Journalists often put things into either-or scenarios.

An asteroid can literally destroy 80 or 90 percent of the species that are alive on Earth. These are big events. I mean, this is called extinction.

If we do our homework right, never again should an asteroid that can do damage on the ground impact the Earth. We're living in a time-with our technology-we have the capability to eliminate that major shaper of evolution . . . the evolution of life on this planet.

You see the Earth as a bright blue and white Christmas tree ornament in the black sky. It's so small and so fragile - you realize that on that small spot is everything that means everything to you; all of history and art and death and birth and love.

You almost wish you could turn off the COMM and just appreciate the deafening quiet.

In the short term, some deadly virus might be more important, but in the long run there is hardly anything more important than asteroids.

I am interested in climate change and other topics too. But this thing is so huge, in the worst case we are talking about the end of our civilization.