No Armageddon: NASA Says Earth Safe From Asteroid Apophis For 100 Years

Earth is safe from a potential asteroid causing calamity for the next 100 years, NASA said Friday.

The announcement dispels fears that have persisted since 2004, when asteroid 9942 Apophis was identified as one of the most dangerous potential asteroids that could strike the planet. However, this has now been ruled out thanks to a growing understanding of the asteroid and its orbit by astronomers, as well as new radar observations using precise orbit analysis.

And good thing too. At an estimated diameter of 1,100 feet (340 meters), the asteroid was expected to veer close to the planet in 2029. Subsequent estimates pushed that date back to 2036, and then again to 2068. Today, astronomers have a high degree of confidence. that there is no way it will have an impact on Earth.

“A 2068 impact is no longer in the realm of possibilities, and our calculations show no risk of impact for at least the next 100 years,” said Davide Farnocchia of the Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) at the NASA, which is operated by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California.

“With the support of recent optical observations and additional radar observations, the uncertainty in Apophis’ orbit has dropped from hundreds of kilometers to just a handful of kilometers when projected to 2029. This knowledge greatly improved from its position in 2029 gives more certainty about its future motion, so that we can now remove Apophis from the risk list. “

Of course, Apophis will still pass through Earth in 2029 – more precisely on April 13 – within 32,000 kilometers of the Earth’s surface. This is remarkable because it would be closer than many geosynchronous satellites. In fact, it will be so close that anyone in the Eastern Hemisphere will be able to see it, even without telescopes or binoculars.

Not only that, but Apophis is also much smaller, with a diameter of only 38 meters.

Another asteroid, 2001 FO32, also made headlines to fly through the planet on March 21. But while this one was much larger, having a diameter of one mile, it was at a distance of 1.3 million miles from the planet – which is five times as far as the Moon.

Sarah Chemla contributed to this report.