... NASA joins White House and emergency officials in call for better detection and response to deadly cosmic objects

• Report released Wed calls for improved asteroid detection, tracking, deflection
• It aims to coordinate efforts over next 10 years to detect and respond to threats
• Scientists say 5% of smaller rocks are undetected, and could inflict big damage

The U.S. government is stepping up efforts to protect the planet from incoming asteroids that could wipe out entire regions or even continents.

The National Science and Technology Council released a 20-page report Wednesday calling for improved asteroid detection, tracking and deflection.

The initiative backed by NASA, federal emergency officials, and the White House aims to coordinate efforts over the next 10 years to detect and respond to possible threats in Earth’s vicinity, should they arise.