Alternative

[Savant 231-A]

Ok, ok some of you may think of this as a stupid idea... but here it goes

Why did humans buildt a starship, and gone somewhere?
They have been traveling for ~30 years around  the galaxy, and they found only a desert planet.

Why did they go when they could been in the orbit of Earth?
Ok, this is how i would do.

1. Launch a orbiting facility to go around Earth.
2. Wait fo some time that temp. dust and dangerous particles calm (sit back on Earth) and tha do following:

--
2.1 Make facilities on Earth, low ground, on areas where the comet didn't do too much damage.
2.2 Afterwards, analyze Earth's atmosphere and chemical stats

IF POSSIBLE TO COLONIZE DO NEXT:

2.3 Colonize the part that are not damaged
2.4 Start growing plants in Agridomes
2.5 Repopulate Earth

IF NOT POSSIBLE, DO NEXT:

2.6 Back to the Orbiting facility
2.7 go to a planet (i would take the Moon)
2.8 start growing plants in agridomes
2.9 repopulate humanity.

 :op2:  

[Mez]

perhaps you haven't seen the opening movie in OP1.  A giant metor was destined to hit the Earth and split it in 2.

Now is it just me, or would anyone else with some sense like to be as far away from a planet as possible when it get split into giant pieces?

[Savant 231-A]

I didn't know that Earth got split in two  :blink:

[Brazilian Fan]

Nor me    

[Tellaris]

Meteor FRAGMAENTS hit the planet.   Not a large ass meteor.   Enough hit to throw enough dust and cause a global cooling, thus exterminateing every living life form (except maybe roaches).   (Global Ice Age)

[Mez]

I knew it was a meteor.  Ahh yes, I remember now, they launched a big missile at the meteor to try and divert its course, but they only succeeded in splitting it into fragment.

I knew something got split into two piece, not the Earth after all.