Overview
- The peer‑reviewed study, which published in early July 2026, models a 'pre‑excavation detonation' that drills or penetrates a deep cavity and detonates a nuclear device inside an incoming asteroid.
- Researchers led by Xiaowei Wang ran extensive computer simulations that found internal detonations transfer energy into the rock far more efficiently than surface blasts.
- The team reports that an internal blast could fully disrupt asteroids around 100 meters across and could impart enough momentum to deflect objects approaching one kilometer when planners have adequate warning.
- The authors warn the method requires complex penetration systems, careful site selection, launch capability and months to years of mission prep, so surface‑impact detonations remain a faster fallback for short‑warning threats.
- The proposal is framed as a last‑resort planetary‑defense option within existing global monitoring efforts and past tests such as NASA’s DART, and the study emphasizes there is no known imminent impact threat.