Project Impact: Asteroid Defense Simulation

I built Project Impact to make planetary defense accessible using NASA's real asteroid data. The platform hit 16,000 visitors in its first week and became a global nominee for the 2025 NASA Space Apps Challenge.

What it does: The site runs physics-based asteroid impact simulations using NASA's NEO Web Service API. It calculates crater formation, blast effects, and casualty estimates based on real population data. Users can test five deflection methods—kinetic impactors (like NASA's DART mission), gravity tractors, nuclear detonations, laser ablation, and ion beams—with realistic trajectory modeling.

The Defense Scenario module lets you make time-critical decisions using actual NASA asteroid data, balancing cost, risk, and mission feasibility.

Stack: Next.js 15, Three.js/React Three Fiber for 3D rendering, NASA JPL orbital data, and geographic APIs for impact analysis.

Explore it at