In 1908, the aerial blast caused by the explosion of a relatively small, ~50-metre asteroid, over an uninhabited area in Russia destroyed an area larger than Washington, D.C. In 1994, Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 impacted planet Jupiter and provided the global public with clear evidence of the destructive effects of such impact events. In 2013, a surprise entry of a ~17-metre asteroid injured over 1000 people and caused significant damage to buildings in and around Chelyabinsk, Russian Federation.
Given the global significance of such impacts, under the auspices of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UN-COPUOS, established in 1959), the International Asteroid Warning Network (IAWN) and the Space Mission Planning Advisory Group (SMPAG) were established in 2014 to bring together worldwide astronomical observatories ( in IAWN) and space agencies with capabilities in planetary defence (in SMPAG) in an effort to guard against this cosmic hazard and strengthen international response to the near-Earth object impact threat.
Relevant international entities and partnering organizations:
- United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UN-COPUOS)
- Space Mission Planning Advisory Group (SMPAG)
- International Asteroid Warning Network (IAWN)
- United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA)
- European Space Agency (ESA)
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
- Asteroid Foundation
- Many more joining and confirming their official participation!
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