NASA recently revealed that there is a risk of the Earth being hit by an asteroid nicknamed the ‘city destroyer’ on December 22, 2032. The latest information provided by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) on Tuesday makes it the most significant threat from space objects ever recorded in modern predictions.
The risk of Earth being struck by the asteroid 2024 YR4 has now increased to 3.1 percent. However, experts are trying to alleviate the concerns of many people. “There is no need to panic even though the percentage has increased to three. It is normal for astronomers to gather more data before it drops to zero,” said Bruce Betts, Chief Scientist at the Planetary Society.
This is because the global astronomy community, closely monitoring the situation with the James Webb Space Telescope, is expected to correct the data next month. The 2024 YR4 was first detected by the El Sauce Observatory in Chile on December 27.
It is estimated to be 40-90 meters wide and has a composition that is quite distinguishable from rare metal-rich asteroids. On January 29, the International Asteroid Warning Network (IAWN) issued a warning memo after the possibility of impact exceeded one percent, and the number then fluctuated, showing an increasing trend.
The last time an asteroid over 30m in size threatened Earth was Apophis, with a risk of hitting Earth in 2029 reaching 2.7 percent, but the threat was dismissed after additional observations.
