17.10 400-Meter-Wide Asteroid Could Hit Earth in 2032
MOSCOW, October 17 (RIA Novosti) Ukrainian astronomers have discovered a large asteroid that could hit Earth in 2032, though the impact risk is minimal, according to current estimates.
The 410-meter-wide (1,350-foot) minor planet, which has been named 2013 TV135, was first discovered last weekend by the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory in southern Ukraine, according to the International Astronomer Unions Minor Planet Center.
As of Thursday, the discovery had been confirmed by five more astronomy groups, including in Italy, Spain, the UK and Russias Siberian republic of Buryatia, the center said on its website.
The asteroid has been classified as potentially hazardous, a formal tag given to celestial bodies whose orbits bring them closer than 7.5 million km from Earths orbit.
The minimal distance between the orbits of 2013 TV135 and Earth is currently put at 1.7 million km.
However, it also has a 1 in 63,000 chance of colliding with Earth on August 26, 2032, according to available estimates.
Astronomers will be able to better evaluate the impact risk of the asteroid and even determine its possible impact site on Earth in 2028, Timur Kryachko of the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory told RIA Novosti on Thursday.
