Richard P. Binzel

Richard P. Binzel is an esteemed astronomer and professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He is best known for creating the Torino Scale, a system designed to assess the risk of an asteroid impacting Earth. Developed during an international conference on space threats in the mid-1990s, the Torino Scale categorizes the danger posed by near-Earth objects based on their probability of collision and the potential energy released upon impact. Binzel's work has significantly contributed to planetary defense efforts and public awareness regarding asteroid threats.