UN monitors asteroid with a tiny chance of hitting Earth

Source: BBC News [UK State Media]

“UN planetary defence organisations are closely monitoring an asteroid that has a tiny risk of hitting the Earth. The European Space Agency (ESA) has said that it has an almost 99% chance of safely passing Earth on 22 December 2032, but a possible impact ‘cannot yet be entirely ruled out’. The probability that the asteroid, called 2024 YR4, may impact Earth on 22 December 2032 is currently estimated to be 1.3%. Dr Robert Massey of the Royal Astronomical Society, says that he is ‘not panicking or losing sleep over it’. ‘There is no need for alarm,’ he said. ‘The thing about this kind of event is that historically they tend to go away when the calculations are refined. We need to be aware alert and we need to give astronomers the resources they need to track these kinds of threats so that we can take action as soon as possible.’ YR4 was detected on 27 December 2024.” (02/03/25)

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cqx9dgpx98go