NASA has shared their thoughts on the chances of a potentially dangerous event.
A large asteroid, ominously named the “God of Chaos,” is going to pass by Earth in 2029, coming closer to us than some satellites.
Scientists have re-evaluated their predictions to see if this asteroid could actually be a real threat.
The asteroid, which is officially called 99942 Apophis, has a peanut shape and is about 340 meters wide.
On April 13, 2029, Apophis is expected to zoom by Earth at a very close distance of around 20,000 miles (32,000 kilometers) from our planet’s surface.
This distance is closer than many satellites that orbit Earth.
However, scientists are debating whether the asteroid could hit us.
Right now, Apophis’s path doesn’t seem to be on a collision course with Earth.
A study published last month in The Planetary Science Journal highlighted that even a small object could change that path.
Canadian astronomer Paul Wiegert and his co-author, Benjamin Hyatt, looked into the chances of Apophis getting knocked off course by colliding with something else in space.
They discovered that even a small object, just two feet in size, could change its path enough to send it crashing into Earth at some point in the future.
For Apophis to hit Earth in 2029, any object it collides with would need to be about 3.4 meters in size.
Luckily, scientists have reassured us that the chances of this happening are “exceptionally low.
” Wiegert explained, “The odds of a small asteroid we can’t see deflecting Apophis enough to crash with Earth in 2029 are about 10^-8.” He also said, “Considering that only 5 percent of such collisions would be in the right direction to cause an Earth impact, the total chance of a small object directing Apophis into a collision with Earth is less than one in two billion.”
Despite the slim chances, NASA has also looked into the situation after studying the asteroid last year.
They noted the special nature of Apophis’s close pass on April 13, 2029.
“Although Apophis will not hit Earth during this encounter or in the near future, it will come within 20,000 miles (32,000 kilometers) of the surface—closer than some satellites—and it might even be visible to people in the Eastern Hemisphere,” they said.
NASA explained how rare these types of events are, estimating that “asteroids the size of Apophis only come this close to Earth once every 7,500 years.
” While Apophis is expected to give us a great view of an asteroid without any real danger, the unpredictability of space keeps these discussions interesting.
But for now, we can feel safe knowing the odds are strongly in our favor.