Later this month, NASA is going to take a huge step toward killing every human being on Earth.

This extreme action will arrive with the launching of the Cassini space probe, which was designed to study Saturn’s largest moon, Titan.

What most people don’t know about the probe is that its fuel consists of 72 pounds of plutonium 238, the deadliest substance known to man. Scientists have estimated that one single pound of this substance would be enough to kill every living thing on Earth.

NASA has been trying to persuade everybody that the use of plutonium aboard the probe is perfectly safe.

Do not let these people deceive you; it is far from safe. The probe is as safe as Chernobyl supposedly was and has as much chance of exploding on take-off as the Challenger.

It would only take one tiny mistake and we all would be dead. The probe is filled with things that could potentially go wrong.

The Titan rocket carrying the probe has an estimated 90 percent chance of success.

What about the remaining 10 percent? It is going to send all life on Earth to their graves.

The probe is utilizing a “sling-shot” maneuver that has never been done before. This involves shooting the rocket out of Earth’s gravitational field, orbiting it around Venus, shooting it back toward Earth going faster than ever at an extremely close proximity to our planet and then letting it head toward Saturn.

This maneuver seems extremely hazardous to me. What happens if Earth’s gravitational pull jerks the probe back into our atmosphere?

We all die. The same goes if the probe happens to collide with our spherical home.

NASA has wagered every form of life that neither one of those things will occur. If you think that wager is acceptable and sane, I have a bridge I’m willing to sell you in St. Louis.

And why we’re talking about dangerous bets, why don’t we just place President Clinton in the middle of the race track during the Indianapolis 500? I’ll bet you $5 million that nobody will hit him. You want to take that bet?

Thanks, you just made me a rich man. NASA expects you to accept the same type of wager.

Don’t fall for it. You don’t have to accept the bet if you don’t want to. Unfortunately, the press has attempted to cover up the Cassini probe from the very beginning. Popular Science has a feature story on the probe this month.

Of course, they don’t mention the fact that it is carrying enough plutonium to kill the entire planet 72 times over.

Why did Popular Science neglect to mention this important news? I’m not exactly sure because they usually have accurate coverage. Nobody at the magazine could tell me; those few people I spoke with were either reluctant to answer the question or referred me to somebody else who was reluctant. I got the run-around for three days and finally gave up.

I believe the plutonium aspect has been largely ignored because it would be bad for business. NASA has worked really hard to show the public that space research is a valuable asset in discovering new ways to help humanity.

The organization loads us with information about its successful Mars probe, about how much they have learned and how it can benefit our future. This is all smoke and mirrors, of course.

It is no coincidence that the Cassini probe falls so closely on the heels of the Mars exploration. NASA tried to cover up the potential destruction of the world with a feel-good atmosphere of Martian excitement.

Don’t buy NASA’s excuses that nothing can possibly go wrong. Murphy’s law states that if something can go wrong, it will.

For example, a Russian rocket powered by less than one pound of plutonium exploded in the upper atmosphere in 1996. The accident spread the deadly substance over land for hundreds of thousands of acres. Since then, health researchers have noticed that lung cancer has risen worldwide.

Of course, NASA would lead you to believe that the rise in lung cancer has no correlation with the Russian explosion. Do not believe this lie. Plutonium is known to cause health defects, including several types of cancer.

Additionally, even those countries where cigarettes (long known to cause lung cancer) are unavailable or scarce experienced this increase.

Is this a coincidence? I think not.

We all have a responsibility to halt the Cassini probe. You cannot afford to idly stand by and watch as all life on our planet is destroyed.

Your complacence will only earn your family, your friends and yourself slow, miserable deaths. The probe is going to be launched later this month. Call your senator or representative today and say you do not want to see the probe leave the ground.

And even if we happen to fail and the entire operation goes smoothly, don’t give up the fight. Success will only increase NASA’s desire to send more things out of the atmosphere carrying plutonium.

Eventually the odds will catch up with them and something will go wrong. Then we all die. It’s that painfully simple.

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Ben Jones is a sophomore in English from Des Moines.