in order to protect against such events (or at least reduce their effects ),NASA has developed ways to monitor near-earth objects (NEOs). For example, the near-earth asteroid rendezvous (NEAR) is a spacecraft that monitirs eros,one of the largest asteroids being studied. eros is scheduled for a near-earth approach on january 31,2012.this huge flying rock is the potato,and its size is 170 square miles (442 square kilometers). scientists believe that it might strike earth in 1.5 to 5 million years. the probability of oneof these near-earth objects hitting earth over the next hundred years is virtually negligible. however,scientists are concerned ,because at present , there are about 900 asteroids circulating our solar sstem.lf an aster oid the size of Eros fell on earth in the middle of the atlantic,it would have catastrophic effects