The Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in California is conducting a comprehensive analysis of the probabilities of Near-Earth Objects (NEOs), asteroids and comets. In case of a possible threat, there are several ways to follow.
diversion or nuclear weapon
According to planetary scientist Detlef Koschny, we’ve mapped 90% of asteroids 1 kilometer in radius or larger, and scientists are confident that none of them pose a threat to Earth in the next 100 years.
However, if an asteroid less than 1 kilometer in radius threatens Earth, scientists are working to develop strategies to counter such a threat. NASA has partnered with the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) on a mission called the Double Asteroid Orientation Test (DART), and they will try to reorient an asteroid next September. The spacecraft will crash into an asteroid 530 feet in diameter. The force of the impact would be equivalent to three tons of TNT that could deflect the asteroid from its current orbit.
In the event of a real threat, the plan will implement a diversion mission like the NASA DART project. However, if such a mission fails, more drastic measures will have to be taken. Scientists have developed a simulation that reveals that a 1-megaton nuclear warhead will stop at least 99% of the impact mass of an asteroid up to 330 feet wide, and this method will be used if deflection fails.
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