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SpaceEngineerSS edited this page Dec 18, 2025 · 1 revision

🛸 NASA API Integration

CosmoRisk uses the NASA NeoWs (Near Earth Object Web Service) API for real asteroid data.

Getting Your API Key

  1. Visit api.nasa.gov
  2. Fill in your email
  3. Receive instant API key
  4. Free tier: 1,000 requests/hour

API Endpoints Used

Browse NEOs

GET https://api.nasa.gov/neo/rest/v1/neo/browse

Returns paginated list of all known NEOs.

Feed (Date Range)

GET https://api.nasa.gov/neo/rest/v1/feed?start_date=YYYY-MM-DD&end_date=YYYY-MM-DD

Returns NEOs with close approaches in date range.

Single NEO

GET https://api.nasa.gov/neo/rest/v1/neo/{asteroid_id}

Returns detailed data for specific asteroid.

Data Retrieved

Field Description
name Asteroid name/designation
neo_reference_id Unique NASA ID
absolute_magnitude_h Brightness (size indicator)
estimated_diameter Size range in meters
is_potentially_hazardous Boolean (MOID < 0.05 AU, H < 22)
orbital_data Keplerian elements
close_approach_data Future Earth encounters

Orbital Elements Parsed

Element API Field
Semi-major axis (AU) semi_major_axis
Eccentricity eccentricity
Inclination (deg) inclination
Longitude of Ascending Node ascending_node_longitude
Argument of Perihelion perihelion_argument
Mean Anomaly mean_anomaly
Epoch epoch_osculation

Rate Limiting

Tier Limit
Free (DEMO_KEY) 30 requests/hour
Free (with key) 1,000 requests/hour
Enterprise Contact NASA

Error Handling

Status Meaning
200 Success
403 Invalid API key
429 Rate limit exceeded
503 Service unavailable

Caching

CosmoRisk caches asteroid data locally to:

  • Reduce API calls
  • Enable offline viewing
  • Improve performance

Cache is stored in application data directory.

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