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99942 Apophis (provisional designation 2004 MN 4) is a near-Earth asteroid and a potentially hazardous object, 450 metres (1,480 ft) by 170 metres (560 ft) in size, [3] that caused a brief period of concern in December 2004 when initial observations indicated a probability of 2.7% that it would hit Earth on Friday, April 13, 2029.
The asteroid's provisional designation as a minor planet, "2024 YR 4", was assigned by the Minor Planet Center when its discovery was announced on 27 December 2024. [2] The first letter, "Y", indicates that the asteroid was discovered in the second half-month of December (16 to 31 December), and "R 4" indicates that it was the 117th provisional designation to be assigned in that half-month.
Graphical representation of the Torino scale. The sizes are approximate. Energy is in TNT equivalent.. The Torino scale is a method for categorizing the impact hazard associated with near-Earth objects (NEOs) such as asteroids and comets.
While the asteroid Apophis won’t hit Earth, two spacecraft may tag along. ... When a cruise liner-size asteroid comes within 19,883 miles (32,000 kilometers) of Earth on April 13, 2029, it won ...
The Palermo scale was devised for astronomers to compare impact hazards at a technical level, rather than for the general public. [2] It was adopted at the meeting of the Working Group on Near-Earth Objects of the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space which was held in Palermo, Italy, on June 11–16, 2001.
By comparison, the asteroid that ended the age of the dinosaur is estimated to be between six and nine miles wide. However, astronomers say the odds of a collision are around 1-in-83.
The bottom of this size range, 20 m (66 ft) corresponds to the average size of an asteroid with the smallest impact energy (1 megaton) considered for impact hazard ratings on the Torino scale. [ 12 ] 20 m (66 ft) is also about the size of the Chelyabinsk meteor , which produced a meteor ending in an airburst briefly brighter than the Sun that ...
A recently-discovered asteroid approximately the size of a bus is set to whizz between the Earth and the moon on Thursday afternoon. Bus-size asteroid to zoom by close to Earth today Skip to main ...