We are fewer than four years away from what may be the most significant near-Earth asteroid event of the 21st century. On April 13, 2029, the asteroid Apophis \u2014 named for the Egyptian god of chaos \u2014 will pass so close to Earth that it will be visible to the naked eye across much of the globe. Nearly a third of a mile wide and weighing over 27 billion kilograms, Apophis will pass just 20,000 miles from Earth \u2014 closer than our geosynchronous satellites.<\/p>\n
While Apophis poses no immediate danger, it offers an unmatched opportunity to prepare for future threats. Its close approach (on Friday the 13th) will mark a historic near miss. Apophis is just one of thousands of potentially hazardous asteroids that demand our attention. And in terms of projecting global space leadership, the nation that leads at Apophis will be seen as the dominant force in planetary defense.<\/p>\n
America has a unique opportunity to lead the world \u2014 both in planetary defense and science \u2014 by being first to Apophis and collecting unprecedented before-and-after data on how this massive object responds to Earth\u2019s gravity. And in today\u2019s fiscally constrained environment, this leadership can be achieved with virtually no new taxpayer funding \u2014 by repurposing existing spacecraft, leveraging past investments, and embracing a public-private model that delivers results.<\/p>\n
This American Apophis Strategy rests on two core elements: the OSIRIS-APEX mission and the Apophis Pathfinder mission.<\/p>\n
The OSIRIS-APEX mission was approved by NASA in 2022 as an extension of the OSIRIS-REx mission, which returned America\u2019s first asteroid sample. The spacecraft is healthy, operating in solar orbit, and on track to fly by Apophis shortly after its 2029 Earth encounter. Both the House and Senate have identified OSIRIS-APEX for continued support in their FY26 appropriation markups, recognizing its value as a strategic and scientific asset.<\/p>\n
The Apophis Pathfinder mission is planning to use the Janus spacecraft \u2014 two small asteroid explorers \u2014 which were built and flight-qualified by NASA for asteroid flyby missions. The two spacecraft \u2014 named Serenity and Mayhem \u2014 are ready for use and can be leveraged for a pre-flyby mission to Apophis \u2014 complementing OSIRIS-APEX\u2019s post-flyby encounter. This pairing would give the United States unmatched \u201cbefore and after\u201d data on Apophis\u2019 surface and interior. This kind of comparison has never been done \u2014 and could revolutionize how we plan asteroid deflection missions if a future threat emerges.<\/p>\n
The Milo Space Science Institute at Arizona State University, along with the University of Colorado at Boulder and Lockheed Martin, responded to a NASA Apophis mission partnership RFI with a joint concept for the mission. The team has pursued creative avenues to fly the mission privately, similar to commercial models employed on NASA\u2019s Commercial Lunar Payload Services missions that leverage the breadth of the space industry and growth of the space economy, but with the added benefit of being at no additional cost to NASA.<\/p>\n
By moving forward with these missions, America would not only lead at Apophis \u2014 it would also have two new reconnaissance spacecraft in long-duration \u201cstaging\u201d solar orbits, available for future flybys of hazardous asteroids or even interstellar objects. The OSIRIS-APEX team has already identified a potential flyby of the newly discovered potentially hazardous asteroid 2024 YR4. Once on orbit, the Janus spacecraft could continue to be reprogrammed to address future encounters with comets or additional asteroids, making maximum use of the taxpayer dollars spent to develop these spacecraft and providing unmatched flexibility for future planetary defense campaigns.<\/p>\n
Polls consistently show asteroid monitoring is the American public\u2019s top priority for NASA. Implementing a coordinated and innovative Apophis strategy would show NASA is listening and delivering planetary defense and science leadership.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The American Apophis Strategy is simple, powerful, and cost-effective: keep OSIRIS-APEX on track and unleash Janus through a public-private partnership. This would put the U.S. in the lead \u2014 not just at Apophis, but in planetary defense overall. As elsewhere in space, if we don\u2019t lead, others will<\/a>.<\/p>\n For no additional government funds, we can establish a historic and lasting program of asteroid reconnaissance in service of planetary defense. Through the American Apophis Strategy, we would show that America is ready to lead in space once again \u2014 and to meet the moment when a truly Earth-threatening asteroid is discovered.\u00a0<\/p>\n Alexander MacDonald is the former NASA Chief Economist and the author of \u201cThe Long Space Age: The Economic Origins of Space Exploration from Colonial America to the Cold War.\u201d<\/p>\n Jim Bell is a professor and planetary scientist in the School of Earth and Space Exploration at Arizona State University, and is the Chief Scientist of ASU\u2019s Milo Space Science Institute. He has been involved as a science team member or camera team leader in over a dozen NASA planetary robotic missions to Mars, the moon, and asteroids. Jim was President of The Planetary Society from 2008 to 2020, and has written many popular science books, including \u201cHubble Legacy,\u201d \u201cThe Interstellar Age\u201d and \u201cThe Art of the Cosmos\u201d<\/p>\n Dani Mendoza DellaGiustina is a planetary scientist and Principal Investigator of NASA\u2019s OSIRIS-APEX mission. She develops spacecraft and instruments to investigate hazardous asteroids and the evolution of small, airless worlds.<\/p>\n