http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hvDhvPm9l5fHqiHIU5uc6Gpzs-MAD9F4C2NG0
Obama's asteroid goal: tougher, riskier than moon
"because of the lack of gravity, a spaceship could not safely land on an asteroid; it would bounce off the surface. Instead, it would have to hover next to the asteroid, and the astronauts would have to spacewalk down to the ground, Yeomans said.
Once there, they would need some combination of jet packs, spikes or nets to enable them to walk without skittering off the asteroid and floating away, he said.
"You would need some way to hold yourself down," Yeomans said. "You'd launch yourself into space every time you took a step."
"
When an astronaut sets foot on an asteroid and takes one step to start walking, how much does the asteroid's rotation change?
Would the asteroid go back to its original rotation when the astronaut stops walking?
What if the asronaut started walking, then departed from the surface and returned to the spacecraft without first coming to rest relative to the asteroid surface? Would the asteroid's rotation then be permanently altered?
Obama's asteroid goal: tougher, riskier than moon
"because of the lack of gravity, a spaceship could not safely land on an asteroid; it would bounce off the surface. Instead, it would have to hover next to the asteroid, and the astronauts would have to spacewalk down to the ground, Yeomans said.
Once there, they would need some combination of jet packs, spikes or nets to enable them to walk without skittering off the asteroid and floating away, he said.
"You would need some way to hold yourself down," Yeomans said. "You'd launch yourself into space every time you took a step."
"
When an astronaut sets foot on an asteroid and takes one step to start walking, how much does the asteroid's rotation change?
Would the asteroid go back to its original rotation when the astronaut stops walking?
What if the asronaut started walking, then departed from the surface and returned to the spacecraft without first coming to rest relative to the asteroid surface? Would the asteroid's rotation then be permanently altered?