# @unoosa on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/DScqPT7Ctm3
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/38092864-unoosa-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/c823622ee4.jpg
- **Posted:** 2025-12-19T14:07:38.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** UNOOSA (@unoosa) — https://gondola.cc/unoosa

## Caption

At number 9️⃣ of our #UNOOSATop10 highlights, a landmark moment for planetary defence: the first time ever that the International Asteroid Warning Network (IAWN) issued an official warning.

☄️🔭 At the very beginning of 2025, asteroid 2024 YR4 briefly passed the 1% impact probability threshold for notification, prompting IAWN to alert UNOOSA so that we could inform Member States and coordinate next steps.

Although follow-up observations confirmed the asteroid posed no threat, the case marked a first successful testing of global communication channels and demonstrated why international cooperation is essential to prepare for high-impact risks.

🌌Astronomers also focused on Comet 3I/ATLAS, only the third interstellar object ever detected. Though harmless, its unique path offered a rare scientific opportunity, prompting IAWN to launch a global observing exercise to refine astrometry methods from comet observations.

IAWN, coordinated through nasa's Planetary Defense Coordination Office, and its sister mechanism, the Space Mission Planning Advisory Group (SMPAG) chaired by the europeanspaceagency (ESA), were established by COPUOS. They work closely with UNOOSA to ensure the world can share information and respond collectively to potential asteroid or comet threats.

🔗 View our YouTube explainer on planetary defence and read more about near-Earth asteroids, planetary defence, and the International Year of Asteroid Awareness and Planetary Defence (2029) in our 2026 Global Catastrophic Risks Report article via the link in bio!

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## Tags

unoosatop10

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