The term that scientists use to describe objects that might hit Earth as a group is "near-Earth objects."
When scientists discuss objects that might hit Earth, they commonly use the term "near-Earth objects" to describe them as a group. This term refers to asteroids and comets that come within close proximity to Earth's orbit. "Shoemaker-Levy 9" specifically refers to a famous comet that broke apart and collided with Jupiter in 1994. "Celestial bodies" is a more general term that includes any natural object in space, such as planets, moons, asteroids, comets, and stars.
