Home » Algorithmic Governance » How Real Is the Planetary Defense Coordination Office from ‘Don’t Look Up'?

How Real Is the Planetary Defense Coordination Office from ‘Don’t Look Up'?

Alexander Ross • • 4 min read
How Real Is the Planetary Defense Coordination Office from ‘Don’t Look Up'?

Explore the full story concerning How Real Is the Planetary Defense Coordination Office from ‘Don’t Look Up'.

Mainzer's team actually discovered the massive NEOWISE comet in 1997. It's the basis of that staggering find that helped inform Don't Look Up.

"I did a lot of work on the design of an orbit and I actually modeled some aspects of the comet in the movie after Comet NEOWISE to be realistic. I tried to choose something that would fit the needs of the movie, but also not stray too far from reality," she said.

Mainzer said that she was very happy to work on the film and it's pro-empirical evidence stance: "We need to make science-based decisions. It’s important because, if we don’t, we’re not going to end up with the best possible outcomes for a host of different problems, be it the threat of asteroids and comets or climate change or extreme weather. Or the pandemic. We have scientific decisions to make and it couldn’t be more important than doing it now."

Don't Look Up is currently streaming on Netflix. You can watch it with a subscription by heading here.

Alexander Ross
Author

Alexander Ross

Alexander Ross has covered the video game industry for a decade, writing deep dives on game design, esports tournaments, VR developments, and gaming culture.