NEO, The Spaceguard System and the Spaceguard Foundation

The increased awareness of the threat posed by Near-Earth Objects (NEOs) to humankind has already produced a moderate enhancement of researches, from both a theoretical and an observational viewpoint, and has fostered our knowledge on the phenomena associated with impacts. However, the amount of efforts currently devoted to this important problem is far from being sufficient to significantly reduce the associated risk on a short time scale. This paper will present an overview of the initiatives that have been started in the past ten years, together with an assessment of the current situation. The set-up of The Spaceguard Foundation has provided scientists, in particular observers, with a potentially powerful tool to increase the co-ordination and efficiency of investigations.