NERDBEEP

An asteroid that could hit Earth with the power of 2,500 nuclear bombs flew close to the planet on September 16.

Astronomers Discover Asteroid Heading to the Earth

ScienceDiscover

NERDTWIST

Ukrainian astronomers said there is a
chance it could come even closer and strike our
planet on August 26, 2032.
Nasa has attempted to calm nerves by issuing a
'a reality check', which highlights that the
probability of an Earth impact is only one in
63,000.
That means astronomers are 99.9984 per cent
certain that it will miss Earth's orbit. Crimean
Astrophysical Observatory found the massive
asteroid, called 2013 TV135, last weekend and
the international scientific community has
already rated it as one of the two most
dangerous asteroids ever recorded.
The asteroid is initially estimated to be about
1,300 feet (400 meters) in size and its orbit
carries it as far out as about three quarters of
the distance to Jupiter's orbit and as close to
the sun as Earth's orbit.
Massive: The asteroid would strike with
2,500megatons of explosive force, enough to
create damage within a 100,000 square-mile
radius. (Blast location for illustrative purposes
only)
As of October 14, asteroid 2013 TV135 is one of
10,332 near-Earth objects that have been
discovered. Scientists have given it a danger
rating of 1 out of 10 on the Torino Scale. Only
one other asteroid has been given a rating of 1.
The risk for all others has been judged 0,
negligible. The effects of an impact would be
catastrophic, especially if it struck a populated
area. If 2013 TV135 were to collide with Earth, it
is estimated to impact with 2,500 megatons of
explosive power.
The standard U.S. Minute Man II missiles carries
a nuclear warhead with an explosive power of a
little over 1 megaton. But Nasa said that with
only a week of observations for an orbital period
that spans almost four years, its future orbital
path is 'still quite uncertain.'
The space agency expects the object to be easily
observable in the coming months, and will be
using the Minor Planet Centre in Cambridge,
Massachusetts to improve calculations.
The asteroid was discovered by astronomers at
the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory and later
confirmed by scientists as observatories in
Spain, Italy and Siberia, Russia
It said the most likely result will be a dramatic
reduction, or complete elimination, of any risk
of Earth impact.
"To put it another way, that puts the current
probability of no impact in 2032 at about 99.998
per cent," said Don Yeomans, manager of
Nasa's Near-Earth Object Programme Office at
the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena,
California.
"This is a relatively new discovery. With more
observations, I fully expect we will be able to
significantly reduce, or rule out entirely, any
impact probability for the foreseeable future."
The asteroid is much smaller than the
interplanetary object that hit Earth and killed off
the dinosaurs 65million years ago. Currently,
2007 VK184 is believed to have the best chance
of striking Earth.
The 420-foot-wide object is said to have a 1 in
2700 chance of making contact with the planet
in 2048. It is the only other asteroid to have a 1
rating on the Torino Scale.