Professor's reassurance as reports emerge an asteroid could smack into earth
Firstly, according to a professor, the chance is tiny and if it was to happen there are measures to divert it away from the planet.
The newly discovered asteroid has a tiny chance of smacking into Earth in 2032, say space officials.
The European Space Agency (ESA) has said that it has an almost 99 per cent chance of safely passing Earth on 22 December 2032, but a cannot entirely rule out possible impact.
The probability that the asteroid, which has been called YR4, may impact Earth in 2032 is currently estimated to be at around 2.3 per cent.
YR4 was detected on 27 December 2024 by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) telescope in Río Hurtado, Chile. Astronomers calculated that it was between 40m and 90m across.
READ MORE:The asteroid would have the power of a nuclear bomb if it were to collide with Earth, this would cause extreme damage to populated areas, such as cities.
However, officials have reassured that there is a slim chance of the asteroid actually colliding with Earth at all.
Professor Christopher Collins, an emeritus astrophysics professor from Liverpool John Moores University, said: 'Asteroids originate form the Asteroid Belt, a donut shaped volume of space between Mars and Jupiter.
'This one needs more observation to determine its orbit before we can be sure if it will hit Earth. But our planet is a small target and it's highly likely it will pass safely by.
'If not, there are countermeasures we can adopt to deflect its path, such as NASAs Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) project, but it is unlikely this will be needed so don't lose sleep.'
YR4 is currently moving away from Earth in almost a straight line, making it difficult to accurately determine its precise orbit before it returns towards Earth.
The asteroid will continue to be monitored on the ground and space telescopes.
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