Paris (AFP) – The chances have plummeted that a newly-discovered asteroid with the potential to wipe out a city will hit Earth on Valentine's Day 2046, the European Space Agency said on Tuesday.
The asteroid, which is named 2023 DW and is estimated to be around the size of a 50-metre Olympic swimming pool, was first spotted by a small Chilean observatory on February 26.
Don't Panic Over the Risk of an Asteroid Smashup in 2046
A newly discovered asteroid called 2023 DW has generated quite a buzz over the past week, due to an estimated 1-in-670 chance of impact on Valentine’s Day 2046.
The risk assessment doesn’t have as much to do with the probabilistic roll of the cosmic dice than it does with the uncertainty that’s associated with a limited set of astronomical observations.
How Far Away Do You Have To Be To Survive A (Small) Asteroid Impact? | IFLScience
It seems that, when it comes to asteroids hitting our planet, people only have a binary response: not taking it seriously, and being terrified that it might happen at any moment. We ought to have a pragmatic attitude – it is important to not underestimate the threat without exaggerating it.
However, what would happen if one slipped through the net? Well, it very much depends on size, speed, and density. So far, only seven asteroids have been discovered and tracked before they collided with our planet. A very small number.
Asteroid collision shows how much amateur astronomers have to offer
The DART impact ejected vast amounts of dust and debris from the surface of the asteroid Dimorphos. The trail of dust is more than 10,000 kilometres long. Credit: CTIO/NOIRLab/SOAR/NSF/AURA/T. Kareta (Lowell Observatory), M. Knight (US Naval Academy)
When NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) spacecraft slammed into an asteroid on purpose last September, many telescopes were trained on this one-of-a-kind celestial event.
The Hera asteroid-deflection space mission is for recon | Popular Science
Hera will retrace history's first asteroid-deflection test and piece together the crash from every angle.
What happens when a dart hits the bullseye? In a game among amateurs, it sends everybody home. But professional players will want to analyze the shot in preparation to fire again.
MORE ASTEROID NEWS: The chances have plummeted that a newly-discovered asteroid, which is named 2023 DW and is esti… https://t.co/5Tn3uWyyww TheInsiderPaper (from Global) Tue Mar 14 15:37:53 +0000 2023
'No need to worry': Odds drop newly-found asteroid will hit Earth https://t.co/mp6qv2oI2L eNCA (from South Africa) Tue Mar 14 16:52:43 +0000 2023
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