Chances of asteroid striking Earth in the next decade has nearly doubled, NASA says
https://abcnews.go.com/US/chances-asteroid-striking-earth-decade-doubled-nasa/story?id=118653026
https://abcnews.go.com/US/chances-asteroid-striking-earth-decade-doubled-nasa/story?id=118653026
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The asteroid, discovered just after Christmas and named 2024 YR4, could strike the planet in December 2032 as it approaches during another journey around its orbit, according to NASA's Center for Near Earth Object Studies.
When the detection of the asteroid was announced last month, NASA predicted just a 1.3% probability of it hitting Earth. The likelihood has increased to 2.1%.
The overall probability may be low, but a 2% chance of an asteroid strike is "uncommon," Davide Farnocchia, navigation engineer with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, told ABC News.
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The asteroid measures between 130 feet and 330 feet in diameter and large enough to potentially cause localized damage were it to strike a populated city, according to NASA.
In 1908, the Tunguska asteroid, which was a similar size, flattened trees over an area of about 1,250 miles after it exploded in the skies over Siberia.
