NASA’s $1.4 billion asteroid tracker to detect ‘city-killer’ space rocks and protect Earth from disaster

Asteroids coming towards Earth (Representative Image: Canva)

A boulder could be heading towards Earth from a location in space. It could cause mass devastation, tsunamis, and fires if it becomes large enough. Located in Arizona, NASA is building the Near-Earth Object (NEO) Surveyor, a $1.4 billion infrared telescope, to prevent disaster. Its mission is to discover comets and asteroids that could hit Earth.

Close to our world, astronomers have already found 2,500 large space rocks. Most of them remain undiscovered, even though computer simulations suggest there could be another 25,000. The chief planetary scientist for the mission, Amy Mainzer of UCLA, said, "We still don't know everything that's in our own backyard." Detecting the asteroids early on gives scientists time to prepare a response.

NASA's 2005 target of detecting 90% of asteroids greater than 140 meters in size will be achieved by the NEO Surveyor. These space rocks are leftovers from the early solar system. Some could be big enough to destroy entire cities.

The Work of a NEO Surveyor

On September 13, 2027, the telescope is scheduled to launch from Cape Canaveral. Within five years, it seeks to locate two-thirds of city-killer asteroids. It aims to track 90% in a decade.

It is difficult to detect asteroids because today's telescopes are based on visible light. Dark rocks that can be absorbed by the sky are ubiquitous in space. Infrared technology changes all of that. When asteroids are heated by the sun, they release infrared radiation. Even at a distance, the NEO Surveyor can pick up this heat.

From Lagrange Point 1 (L1), situated about a million kilometers away from Earth, the spacecraft will make its orbit around the Sun. Without Earth's atmosphere to obstruct it, this vantage point gives a clear observation of space. With more data, scientists can predict asteroid paths and assess potential threats.

Is It Possible to Stop Asteroids?

It is a process that takes time for asteroids to come out of deep space. They can be tracked for years before impact and trace solar orbits. Scientists can halt catastrophes with early warnings.

The capacity to change asteroid trajectories was proven by NASA's DART mission in 2022. The orbit of a spacecraft was changed when it intentionally crashed into a small asteroid. Other methods involve coating an asteroid with reflective paint to alter its rotation or pulling it with the spacecraft's gravity.

It is important to know when an asteroid is coming in order to stop it. The NEO Surveyor's purpose is exactly that.