There's a bit of a hoo-haa about the Yanks using RAF Fylingdales as part of their Son of Star Wars missile defence programme. However, questions have been asked in the House of Lords about the use of the system to defend not against rogue missiles but rocks from space. You heard it here first (although only because you weren't listening to RadioFour). Reminds me of all the fuss in the 80s about the original Star Wars, in which ArthurCClarke had a go at the Gubmint (and HarlanEllison shouted at him, or something); ironic that it was Arfur who popularised the idea of a global asteroid early warning system, under the name of SpaceGuard. Someone has now put Son of Star Wars and asteroids together for the first time: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/2747015.stm I do worry tho', given a particularly telling bit of dialogue from a DoctorWho webcast --TL :GWB: Activate missile defence system! :*Aide*: We did. :GWB: And? :*Aide*: It missed.