The hits and near-misses you never hear about

A large asteroid known as 2024 YR4 made headlines this week because scientists first increased the possibility of killing the earth, then reduced them.

The latest estimates say that the object is expected to kill Earth in 2032, which is much lower than the probability of 3.1% a week.

Scientists say that now it is more likely to be dashed in the moon, anticipating 1%possibility with NASA.

But at that time since 2024, YR4 was first seen through a telescope in the desert in Chile, two months ago, tens of other objects have passed close to the Earth than the moon, which looks like a close miss in astronomical terms.

It is likely that other people are very small, hit us or burnt in the atmosphere, but nobody noticed.

This is the story of asteroids that you never listen to-Fly-byes, close and direct hits.

The vast majority are harmless. But some take the most valuable clues to unlock the mysteries in our universe, we are desperate to get our hands.

Asteroid, sometimes also known as a minor planet, is left about 4.6 billion years ago from the formation of our solar system.

The rocks close to the earth pushed by gravity of other planets regularly revolve around the earth.

For most human history, it is impossible to know how close we have come by a large asteroid.

The serious monitoring of the objects near Earth began only in the late 20th century, describing Professor Mark Boslo from the University of New Mexico. “Earlier we were happy with him,” he says.

Now we know that quite large items – 40 meters or more – passes between the Earth and the Moon several times a year. It is the only size of asteroids that exploded in Siberia in 1908, injuring people and damage to more than 200 square miles.

The most severe near-Mis, and the closest comparison with the YRR4, was an asteroid called apophis, first seen in 2004 and measured around 375 meters, or around the size of a cruise ship.

Professor Patrick Mitchell of the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) tracked the epoffis and recalled that it was considered the most dangerous asteroid ever.

It took time till 2013 to get enough observation to understand that it was not going to hit the Earth.

But he says that there was a big difference with YRR4. “We didn’t know what to do. We discovered something, we set an impact possibility, and then thought, what do we say?” He says. Scientists and governments did not know how to respond, they say.

A large asteroid strike can be frightening if it collides with an area where humans live.

We do not know properly how big the YR4 is so far, but if it is at the top end of the estimates, then it crosses about 90 meters, it will probably be largely intact rather than entering the Earth’s atmosphere.

“The living asteroid mass can create a pit. The structures in the surrounding area will be destroyed and people will be at risk of serious injury within the local area (dozens of kilometers).” Some people could die.

But since the apophis, the planets are called the protection.

Prof. Mitchell is part of the International Space Mission Planning Advisory Group.

Its representatives advise governments how to respond to an asteroid danger and run rehearsal exercises directly for the hit. One is running now.

If the asteroid was on the course for a city or city, then Dr. Boslo compared the response to a major storm preparations, including withdrawal and measures to protect the infrastructure.

The Space Mission Planning Advisory Group will be reunited in April to decide what to do about YR4.

By then most scientists hope that the risk will go almost completely, as its projection calculation becomes more accurate.

We have options beyond “taking hits”, because Dr. Kumamoto puts it.

NASA and European Space Agency have developed technologies to close dangerous asteroids.

NASA’s double asteroid redirect test (Dart) successfully slammed a spacecraft in asteroid demorphos to change its path.

However, scientists suspect that if it will work in the case of YR4, it is due to uncertainty as to what it is and to successfully deflerate the small window of time.

And what about the asteroids colliding with the earth? A strange truth for scientists is that a direct strike on the land away from humans is an ideal landscape for asteroids.

It gives them real pieces from distant objects within our solar system, as well as the impact of the Earth in history.

About 50,000 asteroids have been found in Antarctica. The most famous, the most famous, called Alh 84001, is believed to have originated on Mars and contains minerals with important evidence about the history of the planet, suggesting that it was hot and had water on its surface billions of years ago.

In 2023, scientists discovered an asteroid called 33 polyhimnia, in which an element can be dense compared to anything found on Earth.

This superhavi element will be completely new to our planet. 33 polyhemia is at least 170 million kilometers away, but it is a sign of incredible ability of asteroids for our understanding of science.

Now that the YRR4 collides with the moon, some scientists are getting excited about it.

An effect can answer the real world of questions that they are able to use only computers.

“A data point of a real example will also be incredibly powerful,” says Prof. Geth Colins of Imperial College London.

“How much material comes out when the asteroid is hit? How fast does it go? How far is that journey?” He asks.

This will help them test the scenarios that they have designed about asteroid effects on Earth, which helps to produce better predictions.

YRR4 reminded us that we live on a planet that is unsafe for a collision, with some solar system – filled with rocks.

Scientists have warned against decency, saying that it is a case, if not, a large asteroid will threaten human life on Earth, although most expects that will be in the coming centuries rather than decades.

Meanwhile, our ability to monitor space improves. At the end of this year, the largest digital camera ever will start working at Vera Rubin Observatory in Chile, which will be able to capture the night sky in incredible detail.

And the closer and long time we look, the more asteroids revolve closer to the earth that we are likely to be present.