»

[x157anz]

ASTRONOMERS have found an asteroid that appears to be on a collision course with Earth.

It has been described as the most threatening object yet detected in space.

A preliminary orbit suggests that 2002 NT7 could strike the planet on February 1, 2019.

The BBC reports astronomers have given NT7 a threat rating on the Palermo technical scale of 0.06, making it the first object to be given a positive value.

Although they say it merits attention, they expect more observations to show it is not on an Earth-intersecting trajectory.

The asteroid is estimated to be about two kilometres wide, large enough to cause continent-wide devastation on Earth.

It was first seen on the night of July 5 by the Linear Observatory's automated sky survey programme in New Mexico.

Dr Benny Peiser, of Liverpool John Moores University, told BBC News Online: "This asteroid has now become the most threatening object in the short history of asteroid detection".

But he added: "This unique event should not diminish the fact that additional observations in coming weeks will almost certainly - we hope - eliminate the current threat."

Dr Donald Yeomans, from the US space agency's (Nasa) Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, said: "The error in our knowledge of where NT7 will be on February 1, 2019, is large, several tens of millions of kilometres."

*
Best start building a bunker in my garden now

Well if you think about this ,
and maybe it does hit earth ,
its damn scary!

[Hadoken]

yeah, it "might" hit us. but i'm thinking i've got better chances winning the lottery.
space is huge, and this asteroid is only 2 miles wide. thats big, but, dont think it'll hit us unless its orbital path has been inching closer and closer to earth over the years.
guess we gotta wait for more info.

[007_JamesBond]

yeah I heard about this, we've got a while till we have to start worrying about it, but I am not worried we have had close calls before

[Hylas]

I'm optimistic: I bet it won't hit us!
In case it will, well, I suppose I won't be here to tell you I were wrong and you won't be here to tell me I was a stupid

[AsylumEscapee]

I'm rooting for our demise.

[Demon Guard]

uhm, firstly with current weapons technology upgrades we will be more than capable to shoot(or who knows what) that lil piece of rock out of space if it's threatening us. IF not, hell it better not fall on my continent ROFL!

[x157anz]

with my luck , they will probably blow it up, then just one piece of rock will fall on earth and..................... it hits my house

[BlackThornn]

Odds are there are already hundreds of plans being worked on by NASA for this thing.. I wouldn't worry too much about it since there was only a minute chance the thing would hit us anyway.

I've heard conflicting reports on the thing's actual size, though.. or at least the amount of damage it would cause. I know it's two miles, but I don't think that two miles is an Extinction Level Event. Just might wipe out a few states or countries if it lands inland.. wipe out a few coastlines if it lands in the ocean.

Then again, my comprehension of this kinda stuff isn't exactly expert-level.

[AsylumEscapee]

Originally posted by BlackThornn
Odds are there are already hundreds of plans being worked on by NASA for this thing.. I wouldn't worry too much about it since there was only a minute chance the thing would hit us anyway.

Bite your tongue!