NASA Would Consider Nuking an Asteroid Hurtling Towards Earth, Says Agency Scientist On 4/30/21 at 12:57 PM EDT A NASA asteroid defense expert has told Newsweek that, in the event scientists spot an asteroid coming towards us with just months to spare, blowing it to pieces would not be such an outlandish idea. Thankfully, the scenario has only been lived out in the world of science fiction so far, but dangerous asteroid impacts are something scientists take very seriously in the real world. This week, NASA's Center for Near Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) has been leading a fictional scenario in which delegates at the 7th International Academy of Aeronautics (IAA) Planetary Defense Conference have been tasked with responding to an imaginary asteroid that is due to hit Earth.