The likelihood that the ‘city-destroying’ asteroid would strike Earth in seven years has been formally increased by NASA.
According to scientists, the much-discussed asteroid 2024 YR4 may strike Earth on December 22, 2032, with potentially expensive consequences.
It may be as large as the Statue of Liberty, according to reports, therefore experts must use caution in determining the best course of action.
It could strike Earth anywhere in northern South America, the Pacific Ocean, southern Asia, the Arabian Sea, and Africa, according to David Rankin, an operations engineer with the University of Arizona’s Catalina Sky Survey.
Ethiopia, Sudan, Nigeria, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan would then be at risk of bearing the brunt of the effects.
What are the chances that the asteroid will actually fall on Earth in 2032, now that we know where it might strike?
Well, it looks like the likelihood is growing every week.
The chance of Asteroid 2024 YR4 impacting was raised by NASA scientists earlier this month from 1.2 percent to 2.3 percent.
Additionally, the space agency has now subtly increased the odds to 2.6%, or a 1-in-38 possibility.
According to the Independent, the asteroid has a three on the Torino Scale, which weighs the risk of an impact against the possibility of one. This information comes from NASA’s Center for Near Earth Object Studies.
A score of 10 on the scale would have a catastrophic worldwide effect, comparable to the one that exterminated the dinosaurs.
The asteroid has a 0.3 percent chance of striking the Moon.
Furthermore, we would be barely affected if that improbable collision happened.
“There is the possibility this would eject some material back out that could hit the Earth, but I highly doubt it would cause any major threat,” Rankin stated to New Scientist.
Gareth Collins, of Imperial College London, added: “We would be quite safe on Earth. Some small ejecta fragments might reach Earth, but [would be] totally harmless.”
According to the expert, these “fragments” would eventually burn away in the atmosphere, thus there would be no harm done to anyone on Earth.
In order to better comprehend the asteroid, specialists are mainly using the Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART), a mission that aims to explore and demonstrate one way of asteroid deflection by altering an asteroid’s trajectory in space by kinetic collision.
