NASA's Updated Strategy for Protecting Earth from Asteroids and Comets

The US National Science and Technology Council has updated the country's plan for dealing with potentially dangerous asteroids. The plan includes six goals for federal agencies aimed at strengthening our ability to detect, track and develop technologies to deflect hazardous near-Earth objects (NEOs), and increasing international preparedness for such events. The report cites the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, which estimates that there are nearly 1,000 NEOs larger than 0.6 miles (1 kilometer) wide out there. The six action plan goals listed in the updated action plan include enhanced detection, more accurate tracking and characterization, and technological advancements in NEO deflection.