NASA's asteroid mission to Apophis: Key for Earth's defense

On Friday the 13th (yes, really) of April 2029, Earth will avoid an apocalyptic event by an astronomical hair's breadth as the asteroid Apophis, streaks by. It will come closer to Earth than the Moon — much closer in fact. It will come between us and the satellites that bring us radio, television and military intelligence.

Apophis is named after an Egyptian god of chaos and evil. If it were to hit Earth, chaos would be the least of our trouble. It’s 1,000 feet across, the size of a football stadium, and it’s going 69,000 miles an hour.  

Apophis won’t hit us — at least, we’re pretty certain it won't. But it does offer us an historic opportunity to closely observe it and improve our ability to defend against future asteroid threats.

Unfortunately, our government is blowing the chance.  

OSIRIS-REx (Origins Spectral Interpretation Resource Identification Regolith Explorer) has been in space almost 10 years, and it has already returned bits of another asteroid named Bennu. With clever rocket science, NASA redirected OSIRIS-Rex so that it will catch up with Apophis just days after its closest encounter to Earth.

Using the same billion-dollar instrument suite designed for its original asteroid, the spacecraft will be able to closely study the surface, shape and gravity of Apophis. It’s a fantastic deal for the taxpayer: two missions for the price of one, and we already paid for the first one. 

Now rechristened OSIRIS-APEX (Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification and Security — Apophis Explorer), the project needs only some annual funds to pay its science and engineering team. Led by the University of Arizona, this team will prep the spacecraft for its new encounter.

The money needed to support the team is far less than the cost of one of the fighter jets that Jim Bridenstine used to fly or that Bill Nye worked on as young engineer. But recently, due to overall budget cuts, much of that modest funding was taken away. If those cuts remain in place, the science team of OSIRIS-APEX will have to stand down. Crucial years of planning and coordination will be lost. We won’t learn as much and will be less prepared for future asteroid encounters.

There are a bevy of commercial and private sector options that could help, too. Instead of reaching Apophis after its close flyby of Earth, they could get there months beforehand. This would allow us to map Apophis in its pristine state, before Earth’s gravity potentially alters the asteroid. Comparing the before and after maps would provide clues to how asteroids like Apophis are assembled — vital information if we ever need to deflect one.

NASA also has perfectly good asteroid spacecraft sitting on the shelf. The twin JANUS spacecraft, originally designed for another asteroid mission, were put in storage, their mission cancelled, when their parent spacecraft was delayed. These could be easily repurposed and launched toward Apophis within the next few years. Engaging our private space sector in a dress rehearsal for saving the world, at little cost to NASA, is a no brainer. But budget cuts may prevent these crucial investments.

This is our chance to demonstrate American leadership in the defense of our planet.

While we wait for the confirmation of the next NASA administrator, Congress can take action to ensure that NASA has the funding to, at a minimum, support the OSIRIS-APEX mission. When we have new NASA leadership, we urge them to act decisively on this opportunity to leverage small dollars into big meaningful outcomes for the nation.

There are few clearer justifications for public spending than our common defense, perhaps especially from asteroids. Even in our current divided political environment, we are confident this is a topic that unites us all. In fact, as we were writing this piece, astronomers discovered another heretofore unknown asteroid, “2024 YR4.”

Right now, it’s estimated to have a 1 in 71 (1.4 percent) chance of striking Earth in 2032. That might seem like a small probability, but it’s not zero. Further observations will likely confirm that 2024 YR4 will miss us. But how will the world react, if it is indeed on a collision course? It’s a vivid reminder of what’s at stake for our species.

Kids of all ages love two things: space and dinosaurs. It turns out these two areas of study are intimately connected, or at least, one impacted the other. You know the history: 66 million years ago, a massive asteroid struck Earth, leading to the extinction of the ancient dinosaurs. The ancient dinosaurs did not have a space program. But we do; let’s use it wisely. 

Jim Bridenstine served as NASA administrator from 2018-2021. He is the managing partner of The Artemis Group, a strategic consulting firm. The University of Arizona is a client of the company. Bill Nye is a science educator and a New York Times bestselling author. He is Chief Executive Officer of The Planetary Society.