Name for Doomsday Rock
Has to be "Vonnegut." Imagine humanity, after all our wars and petty feuds, scheming and hustling, taken out by a frozen rock. It's all going to end someday, one way or another. If it happens in our lifetimes at least we get to say we saw it happen.
Seriously, the Elite want to know about a possible extinction event so they can barricade themselves against the inevitable financial and social upheaval that will ensue when word leaks out to the masses. This asteroid-gazing program isn't for the likes of us, it's for Our Betters.