![]() Fewer than half of the 460-foot (140-meter) objects have been confirmed, with millions of smaller but still-dangerous objects zooming around. What’s worrisome, though, are the unknown threats. Otherwise, “it would be like the movies, right?” said NASA’s science mission chief Thomas Zurbuchen. The good news is that the coast seems clear for the next century, with no known threats. NASA’s planetary defense officer, Lindley Johnson, figures he’s seen them all since 1979′s “Meteor,” his personal favorite “since Sean Connery played me.” While some of the sci-fi films are more accurate than others, he noted, entertainment always wins out. Hollywood has churned out dozens of killer-space-rock movies over the decades, including 1998′s “Armageddon” which brought Bruce Willis to Cape Canaveral for filming, and last year's “Don’t Look Up” with Leonardo DiCaprio leading an all-star cast. NASA’s Psyche spacecraft should have launched this year to a metal-rich asteroid between Mars and Jupiter, but the team couldn’t test the flight software in time. One asteroid mission is grounded while an independent review board weighs its future. In the next few years, NASA also plans to launch a census-taking telescope to identify hard-to-find asteroids that could pose risks. Another spacecraft, Near-Earth Asteroid Scout, is loaded into NASA’s new moon rocket awaiting liftoff it will use a solar sail to fly past a space rock that’s less than 60 feet (18 meters) next year. ![]() NASA’s Lucy spacecraft, meanwhile, is headed to asteroids near Jupiter, after launching last year. China hopes to follow suit with a mission launching in 2025. Japan was the first to retrieve asteroid samples, accomplishing the feat twice. NASA has close to a pound (450 grams) of rubble collected from asteroid Bennu headed to Earth. Planet Earth is on an asteroid-chasing roll. ![]()
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