Washington, D.C., USA – A recently released footage has shown asteroid 2024 YR4, which has a small but increasing chance of striking the Earth on December 22, 2032......CONTINUE READING THE ARTICLE FROM THE SOURCE>>>>>
Initially spotted with a negligible impact probability, the chance of collision has now risen to 3.2%, equivalent to a 1 in 32 chance.
Astronomers will continue to reassess the impact probability as they track the asteroid.
Tracking and impact predictions
By April 2025, asteroid 2024 YR4 will be so distant that it will become too faint to be detected by Earth-based telescopes, making it impossible to track its progress until 2028.
The latest impact probability can be found on the automated Sentry page at NASA’s Center for Near-Earth Object Studies at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
If the asteroid were to enter the Earth’s atmosphere over a populated region, an airburst from an object measuring between 130 to 200 feet (40 to 60 meters) could shatter windows or cause minor structural damage across a city.
A larger asteroid, about 300 feet (90 meters) in size, could potentially cause more severe damage, collapsing residential structures and shattering windows across larger areas.
Potential deflection and future measures
In the event that asteroid 2024 YR4 heads for Earth and poses a significant threat, a kinetic impactor spacecraft, such as NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission—which successfully collided with the asteroid Dimorphos in 2022—could be used as a deflection technique.
NASA emphasized that each asteroid is unique, and deflection would depend on factors such as the asteroid’s size, physical properties, orbit, and discovery warning time.
For now, NASA is still in the information-gathering stage regarding asteroid 2024 YR4.
Countries likely to be affected by asteroid
Legit.ng earlier reported that NASA has confirmed the possibility that an asteroid named 2024 YR4 could strike the Earth in just seven years, with a 1 in 43 chance, equating to a 2.3% probability.
The asteroid, which measured between 40 and 100 metres wide and was dubbed ‘the city destroyer,’ passed by Earth at 828,800 kilometres on Christmas Day 2024.