A shuttle's unfortunate demise in outer space alerts NASA to a doomsday asteroid that is on a collision course with Earth. it seems that the only way to knock it off course is to drill into its surface and detonate a nuclear weapon. But as NASA's underfunded yet resourceful team trains the world's best drillers for the job, the world's social order begins to break down as the information reaches the public and hysteria results. As high-ranking officials play politics with the effort, members of the drilling team face deep personal issues that might jeopardize humanity's last chance.—Paul Cezanne