ASTRONOMERS have been rocked by the discovery of a new asteroid that could hit Earth in only seven years.
Experts say there’s currently a one in 83 chance the asteroid could strike the planet in 2032.
Experts say there’s no need to panic about the asteroid[/caption]
However, they caution that there’s no need for the public to panic as the data is likely to change for the better as they learn more about it.
Nevertheless, the rock has been added to the top of Nasa‘s impact risk list.
The asteroid, named 2024 YR4, was only recently discovered by scientists.
It’s thought to be 55-metres wide, about half the length of a football pitch.
The Torino scale – Nasa’s hazard scale rating – has put 2024 YR4 at three out of 10, meaning it’s an asteroid “meriting attention by astronomers”.
Nasa’s description of a three rating says: “Current calculations give a 1% or greater chance of collision capable of localized destruction.
“Most likely, new telescopic observations will lead to re-assignment to Level 0.
“Attention by public and by public officials is merited if the encounter is less than a decade away.”
David Rankin, an engineer at the Catalina Sky Survey, wrote on BlueSky: “This is one of the highest probabilities of an impact from a significantly sized rock ever, making it a Torino scale 3.
“Most likely outcome is still a near miss. We continue to track it!”
The so-called “God of Chaos” asteroid – formally known as 99942 Apophis – is the only other space rock to score higher on the Torino scale.
In 2004, it was ranked at four and experts warned the asteroid could hit Earth in 2029.
However, with further observations the asteroid has been downgraded to zero, meaning it’s no longer expected to strike the planet.
Nasa’s Torino Impact Hazard Scale
Explained by Jamie Harris, Assistant Technology and Science Editor at The Sun
Nasa uses something called the Torino Impact Hazard Scale to rate asteroids and other objects.
It goes from zero to 10.
Zero – also known as white zone – is defined as: “The likelihood of a collision is zero, or is so low as to be effectively zero. Also applies to small objects such as meteors and bodies that burn up in the atmosphere as well as infrequent meteorite falls that rarely cause damage.”
At the top end of the scale is 10, which states: “A collision is certain, capable of causing global climatic catastrophe that may threaten the future of civilization as we know it, whether impacting land or ocean. Such events occur on average once per 100,000 years, or less often.”
