The U.S. government is stepping up efforts to protect the Earth from asteroids.

June 22 (UPI) -- The U.S. government is stepping up efforts to protect the Planet from asteroids that could destroy entire regions and even the continent, the Daily Telegraph reported.
Wednesday U.S. time, the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) released a 20-page report calling for improved methods for detecting, tracking and shifting asteroids.
NSTC initiative, backed by NASA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the White House, aims to coordinate efforts over the next 10 years to identify and respond to threats that may occur near The Earth.
EXPLAINED BY NASA, NEAR-Earth objects (NEO) include all asteroids and comets within 30 million miles (48.28 million kilometers) of Earth.
Although the probability of an asteroid hitting Earth is low, its impact could be catastrophic.
so far, scientists have not found any asteroids or comets flying head-on toward Earth.
but they could attack us - that's why the U.S. government wants a better plan.
, said Lindley Johnson, NASA's planetary defense officer, scientists have found 95 percent of near-Earth objects about a kilometer or more in diameter.
, however, the search for the remaining 5 per cent and smaller objects continues, and these objects could still cause enormous damage to the Earth.
NSTC released a document on Wednesday entitled "The National Near-Earth Target Defense Strategy and Action Plan", which sets out five strategic goals to reduce the risk of asteroidimpacts hitting the Earth.
these five objectives include better methods of detecting and tracking targets, improving computational models, developing technologies to shift NEO orbits, increasing international cooperation and establishing emergency procedures.
(Pictured: So far, scientists have not seen any asteroids or comets coming face-to-face toward Earth.
but they could attack us - that's why the U.S. government wants a better plan.
February 15, 2013, this car dashcam photo shows a meteor flying over Chelyabinsk, Russia, Johnson said the U.S. has significant scientific research, technology and operational capabilities to prevent an asteroid impact. "The implementation of the National Near-Earth Target Defense Strategy and Action Plan will greatly improve our preparedness and, through enhanced international cooperation, to respond more effectively when an asteroid is detected and a possible impact on the Earth,"
he said.
" earlier this year, it was revealed that U.S. scientists were studying the possibility of using a specially designed spacecraft to launch a nuclear attack on a cosmic object close to Earth in the hope of shifting the orbit of a threat object.
while hitting NEOs with so-called impactors could derail their orbits, experts say a nuclear attack may be the best option at a time of time constraints. In a paper published in the journal Acta Space,
scientists from NASA and the National Nuclear Safety Administration developed a plan for the Superfast Asteroid Emergency Response Mission (HAMMER).
BuzzFeed, a Us news aggregator, reported that the 8.8-ton HAMMER spacecraft could be used to hit an asteroid directly or to blow it to pieces using a nuclear device.
a 1,600-foot-diameter asteroid, Bennu, could collide with Earth, a team of scientists from NASA and the National Nuclear Safety Administration of the United States made a recommendation.
currently, NASA's asteroid sampling-return probe, Osiris-Rex, is heading to the asteroid.
While there is no risk that Earth will collide with Benu any time soon, at some point in the next century it has a 1/2700 chance of hitting our planet.
researchers point out that Benu is also the most well-known near-Earth object of all the asteroids that scientists have studied most thoroughly. in a paper in Spaceflight,
, the authors write that two more realistic responses are the use of a spacecraft as a kinetic impactor, or as a vehicle for nuclear bombs, to change the orbit of incoming NEOs.
However, there are several factors to consider when determining the best solution.
first, the size and quality of Benu must be taken into account, and second, how much time it has available before it hits the Earth. In addition, there are "other uncertainties"
.
'The kinetic energy impactor is the preferred option as long as it is feasible, but due to high uncertainty or the short reaction time available, this reduces the applicability and effectiveness of the kinetic energy impactor, ' the authors write.
by sending multiple ships into the orbit of Benu, it is possible to slow it down while changing course to avoid a collision with Earth.
however, if the conditions for using a kinetic impactor are not available, a nuclear attack will be the only option.
Source: NetEase Technologies.