Odds are a funny thing. 1-in-100, for example, sounds like a long shot—until you find out it’s the chance that an asteroid will impact Earth. In a surprising—but not definitive—turn of events, early warning systems this week found that an asteroid set to swing by Earth in 2032 has a 1-in-63 chance of smashing into […]
Briny Residue Scooped From Asteroid Bennu Holds Clues to Life’s Cosmic Origins
Asteroid Bennu not only held water at some point in its distant past but also contains briny residue that harbors some of the crucial building blocks for life, according to a team of scientists that studied samples of the space rock. The brine contains compounds that have never been previously observed in asteroid samples, including […]
New Asteroid Tops NASA’s Impact Risk Chart, 1.2% Chance of 2032 Collision
2024 YR4 is a newly spotted asteroid with the potential to hit Earth—and its chances of smashing into our planet in 2032 is definitely more than zero. I realize that “definitely more than zero” will cause some disquiet in the comments, so to be specific: There is a 1.2% chance the asteroid hits Earth based […]