Newly Spotted Asteroid Has a Tiny Chance of Hitting Earth in 2032

This May 18, 1969 photo provided by NASA shows Earth from 36,000 nautical miles away as photographed from the Apollo 10 spacecraft during its trans-lunar journey toward the moon. (NASA via AP)
This May 18, 1969 photo provided by NASA shows Earth from 36,000 nautical miles away as photographed from the Apollo 10 spacecraft during its trans-lunar journey toward the moon. (NASA via AP)
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Newly Spotted Asteroid Has a Tiny Chance of Hitting Earth in 2032

This May 18, 1969 photo provided by NASA shows Earth from 36,000 nautical miles away as photographed from the Apollo 10 spacecraft during its trans-lunar journey toward the moon. (NASA via AP)
This May 18, 1969 photo provided by NASA shows Earth from 36,000 nautical miles away as photographed from the Apollo 10 spacecraft during its trans-lunar journey toward the moon. (NASA via AP)

A newly discovered asteroid has a tiny chance of smacking Earth in 2032, space agency officials said Wednesday.

Scientists put the odds of a strike at slightly more than 1%.

“We are not worried at all, because of this 99 percent chance it will miss,” said Paul Chodas, director of NASA’s Center for Near Earth Object Studies. “But it deserves attention.”

First spotted last month by a telescope in Chile, the near-Earth asteroid — designated 2024 YR4 — is estimated to be 130 to 330 feet (40 to 100 meters) across, according to The AP.

Scientists are keeping close watch on the space rock, which is currently heading away from Earth. As the asteroid’s path around the sun becomes better understood, Chodas and others said there’s a good chance the risk to Earth could drop to zero.

The asteroid will gradually fade from view over the next few months, according to NASA and the European Space Agency. Until then, some of the world’s most powerful telescopes will keep monitoring it to better determine its size and path. Once out of sight, it won’t be visible until it passes our way again in 2028.

The asteroid came closest to Earth on Christmas Day — passing within roughly 500,000 miles (800,000 kilometers) of Earth, about twice the distance of the moon. It was discovered two days later.

Chodas said scientists are poring over sky surveys from 2016, when predictions show the asteroid also ventured close.

If scientists can find the space rock in images from then, they should be able to determine whether it will hit or miss the planet, he told The Associated Press. “If we don’t find that detection, the impact probability will just move slowly as we add more observations,” he said.

Earth gets clobbered by an asteroid this size every few thousand years, according to ESA, with the potential for severe damage. That’s why this one now tops ESA’s asteroid risk list.

The potential impact would occur on Dec. 22, 2032. It’s much too soon to know where it might land if it did hit Earth.

The good news, according to NASA, is that for now, no other known large asteroids have an impact probability above 1%.



Australia Begins Euthanizing False Killer Whales after Mass Stranding

A undated handout photo made available by the Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania (NRE Tas) on 19 February 2025 shows a person assisting a group of whales after they were stranded near Arthur River on Tasmania's west coast, Australia. EPA/DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENT
A undated handout photo made available by the Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania (NRE Tas) on 19 February 2025 shows a person assisting a group of whales after they were stranded near Arthur River on Tasmania's west coast, Australia. EPA/DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENT
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Australia Begins Euthanizing False Killer Whales after Mass Stranding

A undated handout photo made available by the Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania (NRE Tas) on 19 February 2025 shows a person assisting a group of whales after they were stranded near Arthur River on Tasmania's west coast, Australia. EPA/DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENT
A undated handout photo made available by the Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania (NRE Tas) on 19 February 2025 shows a person assisting a group of whales after they were stranded near Arthur River on Tasmania's west coast, Australia. EPA/DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENT

Dozens of false killer whales stranded on a remote beach in the Australian state of Tasmania will be euthanized after bad weather and the isolated location hampered efforts to push them back into the waters, Australian authorities said on Thursday.
More than 150 endangered dolphins, known commonly as false killer whales due to their resemblance to killer whales, were found stranded this week in the island state's northwest coast near Arthur River, about 400 km (250 miles) from Tasmania's state capital, Hobart.
"The conditions that the team faced yesterday in attempts to refloat the whales proved very challenging and in fact, dangerous to our staff," Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service Brendon Clark said in a media briefing.
A total of 27 animals were euthanised on Thursday morning while 38 were still alive, Reuters quoted Clark as saying.
The euthanasia process is expected to finish later on Thursday.
Officials have said the stranding response would be complex due to the inaccessibility of the site, ocean conditions and the challenges of getting specialist equipment to the remote area.
The animals can grow up to 20 feet (6.1 m) long and weigh up to 3,000 lbs (1,361 kg). They are found in all tropical and subtropical oceans, generally in deep offshore waters, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.