Brace For Impact
The discovery of a previously unknown mass in deep space, whose long, erratic, elliptical orbit seemed all but certain to intersect earth’s own, triggered immediate and loud alarms. Almost overnight it officially became an NEO (near earth object), tracked by astronomers, scientists, and governments around the world. NASA (the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration) was monitoring it, as was the fledgling U.S. Space Force. But what was it? The profile and behavior of the phenomenon bore some resemblance to a comet, and some to…