Theme

Small Bodies & Planetary Defense

Future missions to asteroids and comets — for science and for planetary defence, including surveys to find the hazardous near-Earth objects before they find us.

In brief

Future asteroid, comet, and planetary-defence missions.

Missions in this theme

NEO SurveyorMission concept
In development · Launch planned around 2027
A NASA infrared space telescope dedicated to planetary defence — hunting for the near-Earth objects that are hard to spot from the ground, to find hazards decades before any possible impact.

Already in development or en route:

Comet Interceptor

Knowledge connections

Group includesNEO Surveyor
Group includesComet Interceptor
Associated withDecision & Mission Planning

Sources

The primary and reference sources this topic draws on.

NASANational Aeronautics and Space Administration
Mission data, planetary science, space telescopes, and public-domain imagery.
Most NASA-produced imagery is in the public domain; individual items are checked for usage terms before publication.