WHY WAS THIS FUNDED?

NASA is directed by U.S. law, including the NASA Authorization Act, to detect and catalog near-Earth objects that could pose a threat to our planet. The NEO Surveyor project is a key part of meeting Congress's goal of finding at least 90 percent of large near-Earth objects.

WHAT PUBLIC PROBLEM IS IT TRYING TO SOLVE?

Asteroids and comets that pass close to Earth can pose a real danger if one is on a collision course with our planet, and scientists currently have not found all of the large ones. This project aims to dramatically improve our ability to detect these objects early enough that action could potentially be taken to protect Earth.

WHO BENEFITS?

The general public benefits from improved safety and early warning against potential asteroid impacts. Scientists, researchers, and engineers at Caltech and its partner institutions also benefit through jobs and research opportunities tied to this project.

WHAT ARE THE RISKS?

A contract of this size and complexity carries risks of cost overruns, schedule delays, and technical challenges that are common in large space missions. Because the contract type is listed as unknown in the available data, it is not clear what cost controls or performance incentives are built into the agreement.

WHAT HAPPENS IF FUNDING IS REMOVED?

Cancelling this contract would likely halt development of the NEO Surveyor telescope, leaving the U.S. unable to meet its congressionally mandated goal of cataloging most large near-Earth objects. It would also mean losing progress already made and potentially leaving a significant gap in planetary defense capabilities.

ARGUMENTS FOR

• •Protecting Earth from asteroid impacts is a rare area where a single space mission could provide a genuine safety benefit for all of humanity, not just the United States.
• •Ground-based telescopes have known limitations in finding certain types of near-Earth objects, and an infrared space telescope like NEO Surveyor can detect darker asteroids that ground systems often miss.
• •Early detection of a threatening asteroid gives humanity the most time to respond, and this mission is specifically designed to find objects decades before a potential impact.

ARGUMENTS AGAINST

• •At nearly $900 million, the cost is very high, and large NASA missions have a history of running over budget and behind schedule, raising concerns about whether taxpayer money is being spent efficiently.
• •Some argue that the risk of a catastrophic asteroid impact in any given human lifetime is very low, and that this funding could address more immediate and certain public needs.
• •The contract type is listed as unknown, making it difficult for the public to assess whether proper competitive bidding occurred or whether cost accountability measures are in place.