'City Killer' Asteroid 2024 YR4 Striking Earth Increased; 7 Cities, Including Mumbai And Kolkata Vulnerable

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is continuously tracking the trajectory of the recently discovered asteroid as the chances of it hitting the Earth rise to 3.1 per cent. The asteroid, designated 2024 YR4, was first discovered on December 27, 2023. It was detected by the El Sauce Observatory in Chile.

As per NASA, the size of the asteroid, also classified as the "killer asteroid' could be between 40 to 90 metres. NASA's data shows that the eastern Pacific Ocean, northern South America, the Atlantic Ocean, Africa, the Arabian Sea, and South Asia could be the impact regions.

The world’s most populated seven cities - Mumbai, Kolkata, Dhaka, Bogotá, Abidjan, Lagos and Khartoum - are vulnerable, reported News18. On January 29, the International Asteroid Warning Network (IAWN) reportedly issued a warning memo after the impact probability increased by one per cent.

However, as per the European Space Agency (ESA), the current probability is slightly lower at 2.8 per cent, reported The Times of India. As per NASA, the asteroid will be visible from ground-based telescopes of the IAWN till April this year. After that, the 'killer asteroid' will reportedly faint away and will be visible again in June 2028, reported News18 citing observations made by NASA.

The asteroid has a fairly typical composition. Bruce Betts, chief scientist for the Planetary Society said that if the asteroid does not strike the Earth then it will explode midair with a force of about eight megatons of TNT—over 500 times the Hiroshima bomb, reported TOI.

Notably, NASA, with its DART mission, successfully demonstrated asteroid deflection technology in 2022.