NASA: an asteroid could crash into Earth on Valentine’s Day in 2046

Asteroid 2023 DW with a diameter of 49.3 m has a small chance of colliding with the Earth in 23 years – February 14, 2046. This is evidenced data NASA. Now it is assumed that the asteroid will fly from the Earth at a distance of 1.8 million km, but due to the calculation error, there is a possibility of a collision. Given the size of the asteroid, its supposed impact on the Earth will not lead to the extinction of life, but people will need to be evacuated from a large area.

Scientists are still calculating the trajectory of the space object, and the data may change. It is currently the only asteroid seen that has a chance of colliding with Earth. NASA estimates the probability of this event as 1 in 560, and the European Space Agency – as 1 in 625. Asteroid 2023 DW orbits the Sun at a speed of 25 km / s, and it is now at a distance of 18 million km from Earth. In the future, ten dangerous approaches of the asteroid to the Earth are expected in the period from 2046 to 2054. In case of a possible collision, NASA has a program of impact probes that can change the asteroid’s trajectory.

Evgeny Fedunenko