The asteroid Bennu has little chance of hitting Earth

Bennu, an asteroid over 300 meters long, has a slim chance hit the ground. However, this collision It shouldn’t happen anytime soon And it will be a problem for a future generation far from ours. According to NASA researchers, the chance is 1 in 1750 between now and 2300.

The estimate is more pessimistic than the previous estimate, which indicated 1 in 2700 between now and 2200. However, that’s not a huge change, and the chances of an impact remain very remote, according to lab scientist Jet Propulsion System NASA in California (JPL).

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However, Bennu’s path is well known, so NASA scientists know that the chances of an asteroid hitting Earth are nil in the next century. However, the path of the rock becomes more alarming in the year 2135. This year, Bennu will get very close to Earth and will pass about 200,000 km from here, half the distance between Earth and Takes.

Accurate distance

At this point, the exact distance becomes a critical point, because Earth’s gravity will attract Bennu as it passes. If it ever crosses a certain distance, it will be sent down a path that could lead to a collision with Earth within half a century or so.

It is estimated that September 24, 2182 is the most worrying of all, although the probability of this being a bad day is only 0.037%. Despite its achievement, Bennu is not very wide, only half a kilometer wide, which is not enough to cause the extinction of global dimensions, but it can cause very great destruction.

Osiris Rex

To arrive at these estimates, NASA scientists rely on data from the Osiris Rex spacecraft, which landed at Bennu. in 2020 He studied the asteroid closely. The spaceship Bennu has left about three months ago It is now returning to Earth to bring back samples of rock and dirt collected from the asteroid for detailed laboratory studies.

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According to NASA, the real danger of it colliding with an asteroid comes from invisible rocks. According to NASA’s Planetary Defense Officer, Lindley Johnson, about 40% of Bennu-sized asteroids relatively close to Earth have yet to be found.

with information from New York times

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