25 years ago, humanity had its first glimpse of a cosmic collision when comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 crashed into Jupiter — and the whole world watched. We’ve seen evidence of impacts all throughout our solar system, but we had never before been able to watch an impact while it was happening. It was a wake-up call… Today on #AsteroidDay, our Planetary Defense Coordination Office has its eyes to the sky detecting and tracking potentially hazardous and near-Earth objects. Learn how this historic Jupiter

In July 1994, 21 fragments of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 collided with Jupiter. Each fragment carried enough force to cause a global catastrophe if it had struck Earth. Astronomers first observed the comet in 1993 and, through careful tracking, accurately predicted the impact more than a year in advance—forever changing our understanding of cosmic threats. See more from Randall: https://www.youtube.com/@TheRandallCarlson | Cosmic Summit