As we build our future in space, who watches for the rocks?
As humanity extends its presence beyond Earth's atmosphere — satellites, communications networks, and the first seeds of lunar industry — two researchers at the University of Edinburgh have asked a question civilization has not yet learned to answer: who protects what we build in space? Awarded the 2026 Schweickart Prize by the B612 Foundation, Brian Murphy and Richard Cannon have proposed not merely a technology but an institution — a coordinating body called WARDEN — to stand watch over the cislunar commons the way planetary defense has long stood watch over Earth. Their recognition marks a quiet but consequential shift in how humanity conceives of stewardship: not just of the planet, but of the infrastructure and communities we are beginning to scatter across the Earth-Moon system.
- The threat is no longer hypothetical — meteoroid storms, asteroid deflection debris, and lunar impact ejecta already pose real risks to the satellites and orbital systems that modern civilization depends on.
- A single well-placed collision could silence a communications network serving millions, and the proliferation of space infrastructure only multiplies the targets.
- Murphy and Cannon's proposal cuts through the gap in existing planetary defense frameworks, which were built to protect Earth's surface but have no mandate for what lies between here and the Moon.
- Their proposed WARDEN body would coordinate internationally — working alongside existing organizations and reporting to the UN — to monitor and defend humanity's growing off-world assets.
- The B612 Foundation's decision to award the Schweickart Prize to this work signals that the planetary defense community is beginning to formally reckon with the next frontier of cosmic risk.
- With a public presentation on June 23 and a ceremony at Lowell Observatory on June 27 — attended by Apollo astronauts and science communicators — the proposal is moving from academic prize to public conversation.
Two University of Edinburgh researchers have won the 2026 Schweickart Prize for a proposal that reframes one of space policy's most overlooked questions: as humanity builds infrastructure in orbit and beyond, who protects it from the cosmos?
Brian Murphy and Richard Cannon's submission, "Untold Threats: A Worldwide Call to Defend New Frontiers," argues that the same meteoroid storms, asteroid ejecta, and impact debris that planetary defense has long monitored near Earth now pose serious risks to satellites, communications systems, and future lunar operations. The cislunar region — the vast space between Earth and the Moon — is filling with assets that existing defense frameworks were never designed to cover.
Their solution is institutional. Murphy and Cannon propose an International Commission on Space Infrastructure Resilience to study these emerging risks and advise the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space. Beyond that, they envision WARDEN — the Warning-network for Asset Resilience from Dusts, Ejecta, and NEOs — a permanent international body that would coordinate protection of humanity's off-world infrastructure alongside existing planetary defense organizations.
B612 Foundation president Danica Remy described the award as a call to expand our sense of stewardship: protecting not just life on Earth's surface, but the systems and communities humanity will increasingly depend on throughout the Earth-Moon system. Rusty Schweickart, the Apollo 9 astronaut for whom the prize is named, noted that as human activity moves beyond Earth's protective atmosphere, the number of objects capable of causing serious damage grows dramatically.
Murphy and Cannon will present their work publicly on June 23, with a formal ceremony on June 27 at Lowell Observatory in Arizona during Asteroid Day celebrations — joined by Apollo astronauts and science communicator Scott Manley. The prize, which includes a $10,000 award, is designed to cultivate the next generation of planetary defense thinkers. This year's honorees stood out for asking the question that will only grow louder as our presence in space expands: as we build our future beyond Earth, who watches for the rocks?
Two researchers at the University of Edinburgh have won this year's Schweickart Prize for proposing something that sounds like science fiction but is becoming urgent: a planetary defense system for space itself.
Brian Murphy and Richard Cannon's winning proposal, titled "Untold Threats: A Worldwide Call to Defend New Frontiers," argues that as humanity builds satellites, communications networks, and eventually settlements beyond Earth's atmosphere, we need to protect them from the same cosmic hazards that threaten life on the ground. The B612 Foundation, a nonprofit focused on asteroid preparedness, announced the award on June 23, 2026.
The threat is real and multifaceted. As spacecraft and infrastructure proliferate in orbit and in cislunar space—the region between Earth and the Moon—they face dangers that planetary defense has never had to consider before: meteoroid storms, debris ejected from asteroid deflection missions, dust and rubble kicked up by mining operations, and impacts on the lunar surface itself. A single collision could disable a communications satellite that millions depend on. A larger impact could damage the infrastructure that future space-based industries will rely on.
Murphy and Cannon's solution is institutional. They propose establishing an International Commission on Space Infrastructure Resilience to investigate these emerging risks and develop recommendations for the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space. More ambitiously, they envision a permanent international body called WARDEN—the Warning-network for Asset Resilience from Dusts, Ejecta, and NEOs—that would coordinate protection of humanity's assets beyond Earth and work alongside existing planetary defense organizations.
Danica Remy, president of B612 and co-founder of Asteroid Day, framed the award as a shift in how we think about stewardship. "This year's winning proposal challenges us to think beyond protecting life and assets on the surface of the Earth," she said, "and to consider how we safeguard the infrastructure and communities humanity will depend on throughout the Earth-Moon system." Rusty Schweickart, the Apollo 9 astronaut for whom the prize is named, echoed the sentiment: as human activity expands into regions beyond Earth's protective atmosphere, the number of objects capable of causing serious damage increases dramatically.
Murphy emphasized that the proposal is not speculative. "As civilization becomes increasingly dependent on infrastructure in Earth orbit and cislunar space, we believe planetary defense must evolve accordingly," he said. "Our work seeks to ensure that humanity's future expansion into space remains safe, sustainable, and resilient."
The prize carries a $10,000 award and a museum-quality physical trophy. Murphy and Cannon will present their work publicly on June 23 via a live online event, and the formal presentation will take place on June 27 at Lowell Observatory in Arizona, during Asteroid Day celebrations. The ceremony will include several Apollo astronauts—Nicole Stott, Ed Lu, Steve Smith, and Anousheh Ansari—as well as science communicator Scott Manley.
The Schweickart Prize, now in its annual cycle, is designed to foster a new generation of leaders in planetary defense and encourage ideas that protect Earth and, increasingly, humanity's expanding presence beyond it. This year's honorable mentions included proposals on asteroid detection pipelines, kinetic deflection methods, and space infrastructure pathfinding. But Murphy and Cannon's work stood out for asking a question that will only grow more urgent: as we build our future in space, who watches for the rocks?
Notable Quotes
As civilization becomes increasingly dependent on infrastructure in Earth orbit and cislunar space, we believe planetary defense must evolve accordingly.— Brian Murphy, University of Edinburgh
This year's winning proposal challenges us to think beyond protecting life and assets on the surface of the Earth and to consider how we safeguard the infrastructure and communities humanity will depend on throughout the Earth-Moon system.— Danica Remy, President of B612 Foundation
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does planetary defense suddenly need to think about space infrastructure? Isn't that a separate problem?
Because the infrastructure is there now. We have thousands of satellites in orbit. We're planning lunar bases and mining operations. These things can be damaged or destroyed by the same asteroids and meteoroids that threaten Earth—but we have no coordinated system to protect them.
So this is about preventing a cascade failure. One impact disables a satellite, which disables communications, which cascades.
Exactly. But it's also about something subtler. When we deflect an asteroid to save Earth, we create debris. Mining on the Moon creates dust clouds. Meteoroid storms pass through cislunar space. All of that becomes a hazard to the infrastructure we're building.
And right now, nobody is coordinating a response to that.
No one. That's what Murphy and Cannon are saying. We need an international body—WARDEN—that watches for these threats and helps countries and companies protect their assets.
Is this realistic? Can you actually coordinate that internationally?
It's hard, but the alternative is harder. As space becomes economically important, the cost of not coordinating will be obvious. The prize is saying: start thinking about this now, before the crisis.
So the real story is that we're moving fast enough into space that our safety frameworks can't keep up.
That's exactly it.