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Newsweek
22-05-2025
- Science
- Newsweek
NASA Tracking House-Sized Asteroids Approaching Earth Imminently
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. NASA is monitoring three asteroids in the vicinity of the Earth that are zipping through space at around 16,000 to 41,000 miles per hour. A bus-sized asteroid known as "2025 KH," measuring around 37 feet in diameter, soared past the Earth on Thursday morning at over 25,000 miles per hour, coming as close as within 687,000 miles from our planet, according to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). A larger, house-sized space rock, known as "2025 KE1," approximately 58 feet in diameter, is due to zoom past the Earth early Friday morning. The asteroid will zip by at over 41,000 miles per hour, coming within just 120,000 miles from the Earth, according to the JPL's Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS). The national space agency is also tracking a slightly smaller house-sized asteroid, called "2025 KC," that's around 52 feet in diameter. It is expected to fly past at over 16,000 miles per hour, reaching within 636,000 miles from planet Earth, the JPL notes. Stock image: An asteroid approaching the Earth, with an inset image showing a school bus in front of a house. Stock image: An asteroid approaching the Earth, with an inset image showing a school bus in front of a house. Getty Back in April, an asteroid known as "2024 YR4" was approximated to be around 200 feet by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope. "That's just about the height of a 15-story building," Andy Rivkin, an astronomer at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, noted in a NASA blog post on April 2. Earlier this year in February, data from the CNEOS indicated that the impact probability of 2024 YR4 in 2032 was at 3.1 percent, marking "the highest impact probability NASA has ever recorded for an object of this size or larger," the space agency noted at the time. Further studies that month, however, brought that asteroid's chance of Earth impact on December 22 in 2032 down to 0.004 percent. The data showed there is "no significant potential" for 2024 YR4 to "impact our planet for the next century," NASA advised in a blog post on February 24. However, there is still a "very small chance" for 2024 YR4 to impact the Moon on that date and that probability is currently 1.7 percent, NASA noted. Asteroids are small, rocky masses left over from the formation of the solar system around 4.6 billion years ago. They are found concentrated in the main asteroid belt, orbiting around the sun between the paths of Mars and Jupiter. The orbits of these space rocks bring them within 120 million miles of the sun. Most near-Earth objects (NEOs) are asteroids ranging in size from about 10 feet to almost 25 miles across. "The majority of near-Earth objects have orbits that don't bring them very close to Earth, and therefore pose no risk of impact," NASA says. However, a small portion of them, known as potentially hazardous asteroids (PHAs), do require close monitoring. Measuring over 460 feet in size, PHAs have orbits that bring them as close as within 4.6 million miles of the Earth's orbit around the sun, NASA explains. Despite the number of PHAs out in our solar system, none of them are likely to hit Earth any time soon. "The 'potentially hazardous' designation simply means over many centuries and millennia the asteroid's orbit may evolve into one that has a chance of impacting Earth. We do not assess these long-term, many-century possibilities of impact," Paul Chodas, manager of the CNEOS, previously told Newsweek. Do you have a tip on a science story that Newsweek should be covering? Do you have a question about asteroids? Let us know via science@
Newsweek
01-05-2025
- Science
- Newsweek
Asteroids: NASA Tracking House-Sized Space Rock Near Earth
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. NASA has been tracking a house-sized asteroid in the vicinity of Earth that is hurtling through space at a zippy 42,300 miles per hour. Known as "2025 HM4," the asteroid's path brought it within a cosmically-small 477,000 miles of our home, according to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). The space rock is estimated to be around 49 to 111 feet in diameter, according to the JPL's Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS). Asteroids are small, rocky masses left over from the formation of the solar system around 4.6 billion years ago. They're found in the main asteroid belt, orbiting around the sun between the paths of Mars and Jupiter. An illustration of an asteroid hovering over the Earth in space, with an inset image showing a house. An illustration of an asteroid hovering over the Earth in space, with an inset image showing a house. iStock / Getty Images Plus 2025 HM4 isn't the only space rock approaching the Earth this week. NASA is also tracking two airplane-sized asteroids—the "2024 BF" and "2025 GT1"), spanning around 110 to 140 feet in diameter—that will zoom past our planet on Thursday at a distance of around 2.2 to 2.6 million miles from the Earth. Another house-sized space rock—the "2025 HJ5," which measures around 48 feet—will also be going past at about 2.5 million miles from the Earth on Friday. Earlier this year in February, updated data from the CNEOS showed the Earth impact probability of the asteroid known as "2024 YR4" in 2032 was at 3.1 percent, which was "the highest impact probability NASA has ever recorded for an object of this size or larger," NASA noted at the time. Further studies on the asteroid's trajectory later that month brought the chance of Earth impact on December 22 in 2032 down to 0.004 percent. The space agency said that "NASA has significantly lowered the risk of near-Earth asteroid 2024 YR4 as an impact threat to Earth for the foreseeable future" and "the range of possible locations the asteroid could be on Dec. 22, 2032, has moved farther away from the Earth." Earlier this month, the 2024 YR4 was estimated to be about 200 feet by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope. "That's just about the height of a 15-story building," noted Andy Rivkin, an astronomer at Johns Hopkins University who is the principal investigator of the Webb Director's Discretionary Time program used to study 2024 YR4, "All together, we have a better sense of what this building-sized asteroid is like. This in turn gives us a window to understand what other objects the size of 2024 YR4 are like, including the next one that might be heading our way," Rivkin said in a NASA blog post on April 2. The orbits of asteroids bring them within around 120 million miles of the sun. "The majority of near-Earth objects have orbits that don't bring them very close to Earth, and therefore pose no risk of impact," NASA notes. A small portion of them, however, known as potentially hazardous asteroids (PHAs), do merit closer tracking. PHAs, which are around 460 feet in size, have orbits that bring them as close as within 4.6 million miles of the Earth's orbit around the sun, NASA notes. Do you have a tip on a science story that Newsweek should be covering? Do you have a question about asteroids? Let us know via science@
Yahoo
06-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Fearless James Webb Telescope Stares Down "City Killer" Asteroid That Had Been Feared to Strike Earth
That "city-killer" asteroid may no longer be projected to strike Earth any time soon, but scientists are still keeping close tabs on it. Using the mighty James Webb Space Telescope, astronomers have imaged the once-menacing space rock, dubbed 2024 YR4, in infrared light, providing our best estimate yet of its true size. It's also a convincing demonstration of the telescope's usefulness in assessing the hazards of near-Earth asteroids in the future. Previously, our ground-based glances at 2024 YR4 in visible light had suggested that it could be as long as nearly 300 feet. Now, the latest observations reveal that it's somewhat smaller, between 174 to 220 feet in stature — or about the size of a 10-story building, according to NASA. "This is the smallest object targeted by the mission to date, and one of the smallest objects to have its size directly measured," Andy Rivkin, principal investigator of the Webb telescope's Director's Discretionary Time program, said in a statement. "While we are confident that 2024 YR4 will not hit Earth in 2032, there is still great value in making these observations and analyzing the results," Rivkin added. "This will help us determine the best approach to use during a more urgent observing program should another asteroid pose a potential impact threat in the future." 2024 YR4 was first detected in December. By February, the chances it would strike Earth had exceeded 3 percent. Those were by no means guaranteed odds, but as the asteroid was deemed large enough to wipe out an entire metropolis, they were still way too high for comfort. But just as astronomers had anticipated, those threat estimates were quickly downgraded to no threat at all. Nevertheless, the episode rekindled both the public's and the scientific community's interest in planetary defense. There are over a million asteroids in the inner Solar System that we know about, and close to 40,000 near-Earth ones. If one suddenly pops up out of the blue, how can we quickly assess it? Rivkin explains how the James Webb can help in that scenario. "Most telescopes observe asteroids by measuring sunlight reflected from their surfaces, and it's hard to precisely determine their sizes from this information," he said in the statement. With the Mid-Infrared Insturment (MIRI), however, "the heat given off by asteroids themselves can be measured and used to directly give the asteroid's size." In any case, the 2024 YR4 saga ain't over yet. The latest Webb data indicates that there's still a 3.8 percent chance it could smash into the Moon, according to NASA, which is even higher than what was projected a month ago. Let's see if hypocritical humans will show the same levels of horror and urgency now that it's not their world in the crosshairs. More Webb chronicles: James Webb Space Telescope Captures Images of Individual Planets in Distant Star System
Express Tribune
04-04-2025
- Science
- Express Tribune
Scientists say ‘city-killer' asteroid could strike Moon, not Earth
A picture provided by Nasa shows asteroid 2024 YR4 as observed by the Magdalena Ridge 2.4m telescope at the New Mexico Institute of Technology on 27 January 2025. Photograph: Nasa/Magdalena Ridge 2.4m telescope/New Mexico Institute of Technology/Ryan/AFP/Getty Images Listen to article A so-called 'city-killer' asteroid once feared to be on a collision course with Earth could instead crash into the Moon, according to updated observations by NASA scientists. Asteroid 2024 YR4, discovered last year, initially raised concerns with a projected 3% chance of striking Earth in December 2032. A collision of that magnitude could devastate areas up to 80 kilometres from the impact site. Further tracking and analysis have since ruled out an Earth impact, bringing the threat level down to near zero. However, new data from NASA's James Webb Space Telescope has placed the odds of a Moon impact at nearly 4%. 'At this writing, a 2032 impact with the Moon has not been ruled out,' wrote lead author Andy Rivkin of Johns Hopkins University in a study published in the Research Notes of the AAS journal. NASA noted that while the probability remains low, at over 96% chance of a miss, the scenario remains under observation. The next potential opportunity for close tracking will be in early 2026, researchers said. The revised estimate also updated the asteroid's size to between 53 and 67 metres—roughly equivalent to a 15-storey building—underscoring the potential scale of a lunar impact. Scientists say even a 1% chance of Earth impact would justify planning asteroid deflection missions. The current focus, however, is on using any Moon impact to refine planetary defence strategies. 'The possibility of getting a chance for an observation of a sizable Moon impact is indeed an interesting scenario from a scientific point of view,' said Richard Moissl, head of the European Space Agency's planetary defence office. Researchers believe such an impact could offer valuable data, helping scientists better prepare for future asteroid threats. NASA expects more potential impactors to be identified as advanced asteroid-tracking systems come online in the coming years.
The Independent
04-04-2025
- Science
- The Independent
Scientists say ‘city-killer' asteroid on potential collision course with Moon
A 'city-killer' asteroid previously thought to be on a collision course with the Earth could smash into the Moon instead, new data suggests. Asteroid 2024 YR4 caused global concern after its discovery last year as the space rock's trajectory indicated a 3 per cent chance of it crashing into the Earth in December 2032. Estimates suggested the collision could shatter structures as far as 80km from the impact zone. Subsequent observations of the rock reduced the threat to virtually zero. But new direct observations of the asteroid by Nasa's James Webb Space Telescope suggest a nearly 4 per cent chance of the rock smashing into the Moon. Scientists say that even a 1 per cent chance of a rock this big hitting the Earth may warrant the development of deflection missions. 'At this writing, a 2032 impact with the Moon has not been ruled out,' astronomers, including Andy Rivkin from Johns Hopkins University, write in a new study. 'After 2025 May, 2024 YR4 will next enter JWST observing window in the first part of 2026 as a challenging target, which may be worth pursuing to determine whether a lunar impact will occur,' the study, published in the journal RNAAS, notes. There is still over 96 per cent chance that the asteroid will miss the Moon entirely, Nasa said in a statement on Thursday. The latest observations also revise the space rock's size from 40-90m to 53-67m, about the size of a 15-storey structure. 'While we are confident that 2024 YR4 will not hit the Earth in 2032, there is still great value in making these observations and analysing the results,' Dr Rivkin says. 'We expect more possible impactors to be found in coming years as more sensitive asteroid search programmes begin operation.' Many scientists hope for the asteroid to impact the Moon as it could provide more data to prepare for future planetary defence operations. 'The possibility of getting a chance for an observation of a sizable Moon impact is indeed an interesting scenario from a scientific point of view," Richard Moissl, head of the European Space Agency's planetary defence office, says, adding the collision could be "valuable for planetary defense purposes".
