A massive asteroid named “2024 YR4,” as large as the Statue of Liberty, could collide with Earth in 2032, with NASA estimating a “one-in-43 chance of landing.” Described as “one of the scariest of them all,” this space rock poses a significant threat to our planet. Discovered in December, its collision path was mapped by NASA engineer David Rankin, showing a ‘risk corridor’ that includes “India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Sudan, Nigeria, Venezuela, Colombia, and Ecuador.” If it hits, astronomers warn of a mid-air explosion equivalent to “8 million tons of TNT,” affecting a 50-kilometer radius.

While asteroid deflection methods exist, such as NASA’s DART mission, scientist Dr. Robin George Andrews cautioned that success isn’t guaranteed: “It doesn’t mean we can use kinetic impactors like it to deflect any asteroid whenever we want.” He warned that breaking the asteroid could cause fragments to “still head for Earth,” turning a “cannonball into a shotgun spray.”Options like a “monster-sized spacecraft” or even a “nuclear warhead” could be considered, but Andrews suggested evacuation might be the safest approach.NASA has tasked an international team with using the James Webb Space Telescope to study 2024 YR4’s exact size and better understand the potential damage.