In the midst of the Cold War, Americans and Soviets must put aside their differences to save civilization from a huge meteor bearing down on the planet. Paul Bradley (Sean Connery) enlists the expertise of fellow scientist Alexei Dubov (Brian Keith), who is joined by his beautiful assistant, Tatiana Donskaya (Natalie Wood). Although Paul and Tatiana are attracted to each other, they must put aside their feelings and race against time to prevent global disaster.