Building on the strong foundations of the original NEOShield project, the NEOShield-2 project began in March and accesses “Science and Technology for Near-Earth Object Impact Prevention”. Funded by the European Commission, the project consortium comprises industry and research organisations and focusses on preparation tasks for NEO deflection attempts, including the development of a European strategy for future research and mission-related endeavours. Certain areas in which further scientific research and technical development work is necessary have been identified and are consequently addressed by the project in order to reduce the risk of a NEO deflection attempt failing and to facilitate more accurate predictions of the consequences of an impact on the Earth. The NEOShield-2 work packages are integrated into a coherent program of research and development and build on the excellent NEOShield experience.
