There's A 72% Chance That An Asteroid May Hit Earth On This Exact Day

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2024 KN1: Plane-Sized Asteroid To Zoom Past Earth Today. What NASA Said

This celestial visitor named 2024 KN1, the size of an 88-foot aeroplane, is travelling at a speed of approximately 16,500 kilometres per hour. It belongs to the Amor group and will make its closest approach to Earth on June 23, 2024, at 11:39 PM IST.

However, there is nothing to worry about as NASA has classified it as non-threatening, emphasising that its trajectory will keep it at a safe distance from Earth, eliminating any risk of impact. It will pass safely at a distance of 5.6 million km.

Some 30,000 asteroids of all sizes -- including more than 850 larger than a kilometre wide -- have been catalogued in the vicinity of the Earth, earning them the label "Near Earth Objects" (NEOs). None of them threatens the Earth for the next 100 years. NASA also closely monitors a small subset of asteroids known as potentially hazardous asteroids, which have orbits that could bring them closer to Earth, posing a potential impact risk.

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US space agency NASA, in a hypothetical exercise, has found that a potentially hazardous asteroid has a 72% chance of hitting the Earth and we may not be adequately prepared to prevent it.

According to an official report by the space agency , NASA conducted the fifth biennial Planetary Defense Interagency Tabletop Exercise in April. On June 20, NASA unveiled the summary of the exercise, held at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland.

The tabletop exercise, apart from NASA, included nearly 100 representatives from various US government agencies and international collaborators.

While there are no known significant asteroid threats in the foreseeable future, this was done to assess the Earth's ability to respond effectively to the threat of a potentially hazardous asteroid.

NASA stated that the hypothetical exercise also provided valuable insights about the risks, response options, and opportunities for collaboration posed by varying scenarios.

The planetary defence officer emeritus at NASA Headquarters in Washington, Lindley Johnson said, "The uncertainties in these initial conditions for the exercise allowed participants to consider a particularly challenging set of circumstances. A large asteroid impact is potentially the only natural disaster humanity has the technology to predict years in advance and take action to prevent."

The Tabletop exercise summary noted, "During the exercise, participants considered potential national and global responses to a hypothetical scenario in which a never-before-detected asteroid was identified that had, according to initial calculations, a 72% chance of hitting Earth in approximately 14 years."

However, this preliminary observation is not sufficient to precisely determine the asteroid's size, composition, and long-term trajectory, added NASA.

Talking about the Earth's key gaps, the summary highlighted, "Decision-making processes and risk tolerance not understood. Limited readiness to quickly implement needed space missions. Timely global coordination of messaging needs attention. Asteroid-impact disaster management plans are not defined."