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NEO Surveyor

Finding asteroids before they find us.

Future Mission

small bodies of the solar system

Asteroids and Comets

GROUND-BASED TELESCOPES

NEO Observations Program

WHY NASA STUDIES ASTEROIDS

Planetary Defense

Near-Earth Object (NEO) Surveyor is the first space telescope specifically designed to detect asteroids and comets that may be potential hazards to Earth.

Type

Space Telescope

Launch

No Earlier Than September 2027

Target

Asteroids, Comets

Objective

Seek asteroids and comets that could be potential hazards to Earth

Overview

Building on the success of NASA's NEOWISE space telescope, the agency's NEO Surveyor will be the first spacecraft built specifically to find large numbers of asteroids and comets that are potentially hazardous to Earth.

As it scans the solar system, NEO Surveyor's sensitive infrared detectors will track the most elusive near-Earth objects. Dark asteroids and comets don't reflect much visible light, for example, but they will glow in the infrared spectrum as they’re heated by sunlight.

In addition, NEO Surveyor will be able to find asteroids that approach Earth from the direction of the Sun, as well as ones both leading and trailing our planet's orbit, where they are typically obscured by the glare of sunlight. All of these are threats that larger ground-based observatories could miss.

Visualize NEO Surveyor after its planned launch in late 2027, when it begins to stand watch for near-Earth asteroids (NEOs), using NASA's 'Eyes on the Solar System' 3D Visualization tool

Featured Video

Planetary Defenders

How would humanity respond if we discovered an asteroid headed for Earth? NASA’s "Planetary Defenders" is a gripping documentary that delves into the high-stakes world of asteroid detection and planetary defense.

Why We're Launching NEO Surveyor

Finding near-Earth objects is required by law.
We can only do something about hazardous near-Earth objects if we can find them first.
NEO Surveyor will find asteroids and comets that other space missions cannot, filling a critical gap in humanity’s ability to detect potentially hazardous near-Earth objects.
In addition to planetary defense, scientists will use data from NEO Surveyor for studies of near-Earth objects to learn more about the evolution of the solar system.

Use NASA's Eyes on Asteroids interactive (below) for a real-time visualization of every known asteroid or comet classified as a Near-Earth Object, or NEO.

Interstellar Comet 3I/Atlas

Astronomers are tracking and investigating only the third interstellar object ever recorded to enter our solar system, a comet dubbed 3I/Atlas. No threat to Earth, and passing no closer than about 170 million miles (270 million kilometers), the comet will remain visible to ground-based telescopes through September 2025, after which it will pass too close to the Sun to observe. It will reappear on the other side of the Sun by early December 2025.

Learn More About Interstellar Comet 3I/Atlas

At the center of the image is a comet that appears as a teardrop-shaped bluish cocoon of dust coming off the comet’s solid, icy nucleus and seen against a black background. The comet appears to be heading to the bottom left corner of the image. About a dozen short, light blue diagonal streaks are seen scattered across the image, which are from background stars that appeared to move during the exposure because the telescope was tracking the moving comet.

Learn More About Asteroids

Closeup view of a rocky, diamond-shaped asteroid in space

Next Five Asteroid Approaches

The Asteroid Watch dashboard tracks asteroids and comets that will make relatively close approaches to Earth.

Closeup view of a rocky, diamond-shaped asteroid in space

Asteroid Watch

The Center for Near Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) tracks the orbits of all known near-Earth objects, and predicts their close approaches with Earth.

A diamond shaped rocky object is shown side-by-side with another rocky object that has a bright point of light at its bottom right side.

Asteroid & Comet Resources

A curated collection of resources, including activities that can be done at home, as well as videos and animations, images, handouts, and online interactives.

One of the telescopes used in the Catalina Sky Survey. The sun sets behind the telescope dome, which is open.

Near-Earth Object (NEO) Observations Program

The program is a key element of NASA’s Planetary Defense Program, funding efforts to search for undiscovered NEOs using observatories around the world.

Hubble floats above a blue Earth streaked with clouds.

Hubble Space Telescope

Hubble contributes regularly to our understanding of asteroids.

Planetary Defense at NASA

In 2016, NASA established the Planetary Defense Coordination Office (PDCO) to manage the agency's ongoing mission of finding, tracking, and better understanding asteroids and comets that could pose an impact hazard to Earth.

Asteroid Bennu

NEO Surveyor Stories

The Light and Dark Sides of NEO Surveyor’s Instrument Enclosure

NEO Surveyor’s Instrument Enclosure Gets Inspected

Instrument Enclosure for NASA’s NEO Surveyor Arrives in Utah

How NASA Science Data Defends Earth from Asteroids

NASA’s NEO Surveyor and ASTHROS Share Clean Room

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Asteroids, Comets & Meteors

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WISE/NEOWISE

Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART)