Planetary Defense Coordination Office

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Planetary Defense Coordination Office
Planetary Defense Coordination Office seal.png
Agency overview
FormedJanuary 2016 (2016-01)
JurisdictionUnited States
HeadquartersWashington, D.C.
MottoHic Servare Diem (Latin)
"Here to Save the Day" [1]
Agency executive
  • Lindley Johnson [2] , Planetary Defense Officer
Parent departmentScience Mission Directorate, Planetary Science Division
Parent agency NASA
Website nasa.gov/planetarydefense

The Planetary Defense Coordination Office (PDCO) is a planetary defense organization established in January 2016 within NASA's Planetary Science Division of the Science Mission Directorate. [3] It includes a Near Earth Observations Program which funds telescopic searches and orbit calculations. [4]

Contents

Its mission is to look for and catalogue near-Earth objects such as comets, asteroids, and potentially hazardous objects that could impact Earth, as well as help the U.S. government prepare for a potential impact event (and coordinate efforts to mitigate and deflect potential threats if one is detected). [5]

History

In 2005, the U.S. Congress passed the NASA Authorization Act, which, in part, tasked NASA with finding and cataloguing at least 90% of all near-Earth objects that are 140 meters or larger by 2020. [6] [7] However, that goal was clearly not being met by NASA's Near Earth Object Observations Program, which a 2014 report by the NASA Office of Inspector General pointed out. [8] In June 2015, NASA and National Nuclear Security Administration of the U.S. Department of Energy, which had been studying impact events on their own, signed an agreement to work in cooperation. [9]

In January 2016, NASA officially announced the establishment of the Planetary Defense Coordination Office (PDCO), appointing Lindley Johnson to lead it as Planetary Defense Officer. [5] [2] [10] The PDCO was given the job of cataloging and tracking potentially hazardous near-Earth objects (NEO), such as asteroids and comets, larger than 30–50 meters in diameter (compare to the 20-meter Chelyabinsk meteor that exploded over Russia in 2013) and coordinating an effective threat response and mitigation effort. [11] [12]

It has been a part of several key NASA missions, including OSIRIS-REx, [13] NEOWISE, and Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART). For NEOWISE, NASA worked with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, to investigate various impact-threat scenarios in order to learn the best approach to the threat of an incoming impactor. The office would continue to use the polar orbiting infrared telescope NEOWISE, decommissioned in August 2024, to detect any potentially hazardous objects. [14]

Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART), a joint project between NASA and the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, is the first planetary defense mission of NASA. [15] In November 2021, the DART spacecraft was launched with the goal of seeing if it could "alter an asteroid's path, a technique that may be used to defend the planet in the future". [6] The attempt was successful.

The 2021 movie Don't Look Up is about a "planet killer" comet, in which the Planetary Defense Officer is played by Rob Morgan. [16] PDCO chief Lindley Johnson vetted an early draft of the screenplay over two years before the film's 2021 release. [17]

See also

Related Research Articles

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An asteroid is a minor planet—an object that is neither a true planet nor an identified comet— that orbits within the inner Solar System. They are rocky, metallic, or icy bodies with no atmosphere, classified as C-type (carbonaceous), M-type (metallic), or S-type (silicaceous). The size and shape of asteroids vary significantly, ranging from small rubble piles under a kilometer across and larger than meteoroids, to Ceres, a dwarf planet almost 1000 km in diameter. A body is classified as a comet, not an asteroid, if it shows a coma (tail) when warmed by solar radiation, although recent observations suggest a continuum between these types of bodies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Near-Earth object</span> Small Solar System body with an orbit that can bring it close to Earth

A near-Earth object (NEO) is any small Solar System body orbiting the Sun whose closest approach to the Sun (perihelion) is less than 1.3 times the Earth–Sun distance. This definition applies to the object's orbit around the Sun, rather than its current position, thus an object with such an orbit is considered an NEO even at times when it is far from making a close approach of Earth. If an NEO's orbit crosses the Earth's orbit, and the object is larger than 140 meters (460 ft) across, it is considered a potentially hazardous object (PHO). Most known PHOs and NEOs are asteroids, but about 0.35% are comets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Asteroid impact avoidance</span> Methods to prevent destructive asteroid hits

Asteroid impact avoidance encompasses the methods by which near-Earth objects (NEO) on a potential collision course with Earth could be diverted away, preventing destructive impact events. An impact by a sufficiently large asteroid or other NEOs would cause, depending on its impact location, massive tsunamis or multiple firestorms, and an impact winter caused by the sunlight-blocking effect of large quantities of pulverized rock dust and other debris placed into the stratosphere. A collision 66 million years ago between the Earth and an object approximately 10 kilometers wide is thought to have produced the Chicxulub crater and triggered the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event that is understood by the scientific community to have caused the extinction of all non-avian dinosaurs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spaceguard</span> Efforts to study asteroids that might impact Earth

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99942 Apophis (provisional designation 2004 MN4) is a near-Earth asteroid and a potentially hazardous object with a diameter of 370 metres (1,210 feet) that caused a brief period of concern in December 2004 when initial observations indicated a probability up to 2.7% that it would hit Earth on April 13, 2029. Additional observations provided improved predictions that eliminated the possibility of an impact on Earth in 2029. Until 2006, a small possibility nevertheless remained that, during its 2029 close encounter with Earth, Apophis would pass through a gravitational keyhole of no more than about 800 kilometres (500 mi) in diameter, which would have set up a future impact exactly seven years later on April 13, 2036. This possibility kept it at Level 1 on the Torino impact hazard scale until August 2006, when the probability that Apophis would pass through the keyhole was determined to be very small and Apophis's rating on the Torino scale was lowered to zero. By 2008, the keyhole had been determined to be less than 1 km wide. During the short time when it had been of greatest concern, Apophis set the record for highest rating ever on the Torino scale, reaching level 4 on December 27, 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer</span> NASA satellite of the Explorer program

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Potentially hazardous object</span> Hazardous near-Earth asteroid or comet

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">NEO Surveyor</span> Space-based infrared telescope

NEO Surveyor, formerly called Near-Earth Object Camera (NEOCam), then NEO Surveillance Mission, is a planned space-based infrared telescope designed to survey the Solar System for potentially hazardous asteroids.

The Asteroid Impact and Deflection Assessment (AIDA) missions are a proposed pair of space probes which will study and demonstrate the kinetic effects of crashing an impactor spacecraft into an asteroid moon. The mission is intended to test and validate impact models of whether a spacecraft could successfully deflect an asteroid on a collision course with Earth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Asteroid Redirect Mission</span> 2013–2017 proposed NASA space mission

The Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM), also known as the Asteroid Retrieval and Utilization (ARU) mission and the Asteroid Initiative, was a space mission proposed by NASA in 2013; the mission was later cancelled. The Asteroid Retrieval Robotic Mission (ARRM) spacecraft would rendezvous with a large near-Earth asteroid and use robotic arms with anchoring grippers to retrieve a 4-meter boulder from the asteroid.

<span class="nowrap">(341843) 2008 EV<sub>5</sub></span> Aten asteroid

(341843) 2008 EV5, provisional designation 2008 EV5, is a sub-kilometer asteroid, classified as a near-Earth object and potentially hazardous asteroid of the Aten group, approximately 400 metres (1,300 feet) in diameter. It was discovered on 4 March 2008, by astronomers of the Mount Lemmon Survey at Mount Lemmon Observatory near Tucson, Arizona, United States.

<span class="nowrap">2016 WF<sub>9</sub></span>

2016 WF9 is a dark, sub-kilometer asteroid and suspected extinct comet, classified as near-Earth object and potentially hazardous asteroid of the Apollo group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Double Asteroid Redirection Test</span> 2021 NASA planetary defense mission

Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) was a NASA space mission aimed at testing a method of planetary defense against near-Earth objects (NEOs). It was designed to assess how much a spacecraft impact deflects an asteroid through its transfer of momentum when hitting the asteroid head-on. The selected target asteroid, Dimorphos, is a minor-planet moon of the asteroid Didymos; neither asteroid poses an impact threat to Earth, but their joint characteristics made them an ideal benchmarking target. Launched on 24 November 2021, the DART spacecraft successfully collided with Dimorphos on 26 September 2022 at 23:14 UTC about 11 million kilometers from Earth. The collision shortened Dimorphos' orbit by 32 minutes, greatly in excess of the pre-defined success threshold of 73 seconds. DART's success in deflecting Dimorphos was due to the momentum transfer associated with the recoil of the ejected debris, which was substantially larger than that caused by the impact itself.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Planetary Missions Program Office</span> Division of NASA

The Planetary Missions Program Office is a division of NASA headquartered at the Marshall Space Flight Center, formed by the agency's Science Mission Directorate (SMD). Succeeding the Discovery and New Frontiers Program Office, it was established in 2014 to manage the Discovery and New Frontiers programs of low and medium-cost missions by third-party institutions, and the Solar System Exploration program of NASA-led missions that focus on prioritized planetary science objectives. The Discovery and New Frontiers programs were established in 1992 and 2001 respectively, and have launched fourteen primary missions together, along with two missions launched under the administration of the Planetary Missions Program Office. The Solar System Exploration Program was established alongside the office, with three missions planned for launch under the new program.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Asteroid impact prediction</span> Prediction of the dates and times of asteroids impacting Earth

Asteroid impact prediction is the prediction of the dates and times of asteroids impacting Earth, along with the locations and severities of the impacts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dimorphos</span> Moon of asteroid Didymos

Dimorphos is a natural satellite or moon of the near-Earth asteroid 65803 Didymos, with which it forms a binary system. The moon was discovered on 20 November 2003 by Petr Pravec in collaboration with other astronomers worldwide. Dimorphos has a diameter of 177 meters (581 ft) across its longest extent and it was the target of the Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART), a NASA space mission that deliberately collided a spacecraft with the moon on 26 September 2022 to alter its orbit around Didymos. Before the impact by DART, Dimorphos had a shape of an oblate spheroid with a surface covered in boulders but virtually no craters. The moon is thought to have formed when Didymos shed its mass due to its rapid rotation, which formed an orbiting ring of debris that conglomerated into a low-density rubble pile that became Dimorphos today.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LICIACube</span> Italian cubesat aboard DART spacecraft (2022)

Light Italian CubeSat for Imaging of Asteroids is a six-unit CubeSat of the Italian Space Agency (ASI). LICIACube is a part of the Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission and carries out observational analysis of the Didymos asteroid binary system after DART's impact on Dimorphos. It communicates directly with Earth, sending back images of the ejecta and plume of DART's impact as well as having done asteroidal study during its flyby of the Didymos system from a distance of 56.7 km (35.2 mi), 165 seconds after DART's impact. LICIACube is the first purely Italian autonomous spacecraft in deep space. Data archiving and processing is managed by the Space Science Data Center (SSDC) of the ASI. Mission ended sometime in the autumn of 2022

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kelly Fast</span> American Scientist

Kelly E. Fast is an American astronomer, program scientist, and science communicator who currently serves as the Acting NASA Planetary Defense Officer, the Program Manager for NASA’s Near-Earth Object Observations program, the Program Scientist for the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility (IRTF), and the Program Officer for NASA’s Yearly Opportunities for Research in Planetary Defense (YORPD) research solicitation. The portfolio Fast oversees is part of NASA’s Planetary Defense Coordination Office, which manages asteroid impact avoidance activities across NASA and coordinates U.S. interagency and international efforts to study and plan a response to the asteroid impact hazard. In 2003, main belt asteroid 115434 was renamed “Kellyfast” in honor of her contributions to planetary science.

References

  1. ↑ "How a real NASA patch anchors Netflix's 'Don't Look Up' in reality". collectSPACE.com. Archived from the original on January 28, 2022. Retrieved January 15, 2022.
  2. 1 2 "PDCO Organization". NASA. NASA. Archived from the original on November 28, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  3. ↑ Sarkar, Monica (January 13, 2016). "NASA Planetary Defense Office set up to save Earth". CNN. Archived from the original on December 25, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  4. ↑ "Near-Earth Observations (NEO) Program - NASA Science". science.nasa.gov. Retrieved July 23, 2024.
  5. 1 2 David, Leonard (January 11, 2016). "NASA creates office to coordinate protection against asteroids". Christian Science Monitor . Archived from the original on January 12, 2016. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
  6. 1 2 Roulette, Joey (November 24, 2021). "NASA Launches New Mission: Crash Into Asteroid, Defend Planet Earth". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 10, 2022. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  7. ↑ Bromwich, Jonah Engel (April 19, 2017). "Asteroid Misses Earth Narrowly, by Cosmic Standards". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 25, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  8. ↑ Martin, Paul K. (September 15, 2014). NASA’s Efforts to Identify Near-Earth Objects and Mitigate Hazards (PDF). NASA Office of Inspector General. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  9. ↑ Broad, William J. (June 18, 2015). "Agencies, Hoping to Deflect Comets and Asteroids, Step Up Earth Defense". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 25, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  10. ↑ David, Leonard (January 5, 2021). "Defending Earth against dangerous asteroids: Q&A with NASA's Lindley Johnson". Space.com . Archived from the original on October 5, 2021. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
  11. ↑ "Planetary Defense Coordination Office". NASA . December 22, 2015. Archived from the original on July 28, 2022. Retrieved January 14, 2016.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  12. ↑ Templeton, Graham (January 12, 2016). "NASA is opening a new office for planetary defense". ExtremeTech . Archived from the original on July 6, 2017. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
  13. ↑ "OSIRIS-REx". NASA. April 14, 2021. Archived from the original on July 15, 2022. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  14. ↑ Laguipo, Angela (January 16, 2016). "This Is How NASA's Planetary Defense Office Will Protect Planet Earth From Asteroid Collisions". Tech Times. Archived from the original on February 2, 2016. Retrieved January 18, 2016.
  15. ↑ "Double Asteroid Redirection Test". Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory . Archived from the original on February 18, 2021. Retrieved February 18, 2021.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  16. ↑ Harper, Tyler Austin (December 22, 2021). "Silicon Valley Won't Save Us". Slate. Archived from the original on December 25, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  17. ↑ Kluger, Jeffrey (December 21, 2021). "Breaking Down the Mostly Real Science Behind Don't Look Up". Time. Archived from the original on December 25, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
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