Ask the dinosaurs: We aren’t ready for an asteroid ‘Big One’

It is essential that we support efforts by NASA and others to detect NEOs, characterize them and prepare for a rapid response if we need to deflect one. We in the Pacific Northwest are no more susceptible to an asteroid impact than anyone else — but we may be better suited to understand the gravity of the threat, since we’re used to hearing about the “Big One.” We can also deeply appreciate that, unlike earthquakes, this natural disaster is preventable. If humanity invests now, then — when the time comes — we’ll be able to do much more than just duck, cover and hold.

Melissa Rice is a professor of planetary science at Western Washington University, and a member of NASA’s Curiosity rover and Perseverance rover science teams.