Global Scans · Asteroid · Weekly Summary

A global catastrophic risk is a hypothetical future event that has the potential to damage human well-being on a global scale. Some events could cripple or destroy modern civilization. Any event that could cause human extinction is known as an existential risk.

• [New] TransAstra, based in Los Angeles, has proposed capturing a near-Earth asteroid and moving it into a stable orbit for processing, potentially with a rendezvous in 2028 or 2029 if funded. Forbes
• [New] AstroForge, one of the leading companies, claims its DeepSpace-2 spacecraft, planned for launch in the Q4 2026, will be the first commercial spacecraft to rendezvous with an asteroid - with a roughly 200 kg spacecraft platform that could eventually support payloads up to 50 kg. The Oregon Group - Investment Insights
• Lunar and Asteroid mining operations could supply metals / rare materials with far less terrestrial habitat destruction, deforestation, and pollution than Earth mines. NextBigFuture.com
• While the U.S. will be marking its independence, China will be beginning the latest phase of an increasingly ambitious exploration agenda and demonstrating its own autonomy in space, aiming to join both the U.S. and Japan in conducting successful asteroid sample returns. Scientific American
• At present, there are not many noteworthy comets predicted to pass by us in 2026, which has led many to speculate that C/2025 R3 will be 2026's Great Comet - a superlative title often used to describe the brightest comet of a given year. Live Science
• Asteroid Psyche might not be as metallic or dense as scientists once thought. EarthSky | Updates on your cosmos and world
• Astronomers are keeping an especially close eye on one large space rock because it is expected to pass much closer to Earth in a few years than asteroid 2026 JH2. NBC News
• One of several prolific meteor showers predicted for 2026, the Lyrid meteor shower averages 10 to 20 meteors per hour. Travel + Leisure
• NASA's Psyche spacecraft is preparing for a close encounter with Mars that will help send it deeper into the solar system on its way to the metal-rich asteroid Psyche. ScienceDaily
• The Psyche spacecraft is bound for a metal-rich asteroid that it will examine up close starting in 2029. Scientific American
• ESA's Hera mission, which will reach the asteroid Dimorphos and its twin Didymos in late 2026, is continuing its planetary defence studies. Pamfleti
• Preventing asteroid impact risk is a critical part of modern space science and global safety planning. Science Times
• Asteroid Apophis will pass by Earth in 2029, coming closer than geostationary communications satellites, sparking multi-nation action plans for planetary defence. Yahoo News
• AstroForge has announced a second mission - currently targeting a 2027 launch window - that would attempt actual surface interaction with a near-Earth asteroid. Verodate
• Meteor strikes may have played a surprising role in the origin of life on Earth by generating hot, mineral-rich environments where early biological chemistry could develop. SciTechDaily
• Upcoming activities will include asteroid observation missions, crewed spaceflights and tests of reusable launch vehicles. / China OpenGov Asia

Last updated: 08 July 2026