CNEOS

The Center for Near Earth Object Studies, commonly known as CNEOS, is a part of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Its primary mission is to detect, track, and characterize near-Earth objects (NEOs), which are asteroids and comets whose orbits bring them into proximity with Earth. CNEOS plays a crucial role in NASA's Planetary Defense Coordination Office efforts. They maintain and operate the Near-Earth Object Wide-field Survey Explorer (NEOWISE) mission, which is a space telescope dedicated to finding and classifying NEOs. The center also provides essential data and analysis for scientific research and for informing decisions regarding potential impact risks. CNEOS publicly disseminates information about NEOs, including their orbits, physical characteristics, and potential for future close approaches to Earth. This includes maintaining the Sentry Risk Table, which lists objects with a non-zero probability of impacting Earth in the next century. The data and expertise provided by CNEOS are vital for understanding the population of potentially hazardous objects in our solar system and for developing strategies to mitigate any identified threats.