Deep Impact: The Burrito launcher model

[Noah Meyerhans <noahm@>]

A NASA comet scientist compared the recent Deep Impact mission to the
act of shooting a bullet with another bullet while observing the impact
from a third bullet.  Fascinated by this analogy, and inspired by the
smashing success of Deep Impact, we've decided commemorate the mission
by performing a re-creation of it.

Our plan is to construct pair of "potato guns" using some PVC pipe
previously obtained.  We will launch a burrito, obtained from Anna's,
using one of the potato guns mounted atop the G tower.  In order to
minimize danger to human life, the burrito will be launched in the
direction of the currently uninhabited new Brain & Cog Sci building.
The burrito will represent the Tempel 1 comet in our recreation.  The
second potato gun will be used to launch an empty soda bottle from the
roof of the D tower on a carefully plotted course to intercept the
burrito.  Filming the entire event will be a digital video camera,
carefully oriented and dropped at precisely the right time, also from
the top of the D tower.

While the scale and composition of our models is admitedly not
representative of the bodies involved in the Deep Impact mission, we are
confident that the spectacle will be comparable.  We'll be releasing a
detailed press pack, including pictures, immediately following the
successful completion of the mission.

Come help us build launchers, plot trajectories, pick out the contents
of the target burrito at tonight's:

            +-                                                  -+
              girl scout benefit -+-  5:30 pm  -+- 32-G9 lounge
            +-                                                  -+

               For those coming from elsewhere: Building 32 is
                <http://whereis.mit.edu/map-jpg?selection=32>
           Once you are in 32, just take the G-elevator to the 9th
       floor and we will be in the lounge that you will be looking at
                     <http://projects.csail.mit.edu/gsb>


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