Las Vegas Astronomical Society vice president of special events Keith Caceres uses computer software connected to his telescope to locate asteroid 2014 JO25 outside the Planetarium at the College of Southern Nevada on April 19, 2017 in North Las Vegas, Nevada.
An asteroid with the force of more than 20 atomic bombs could hit Earth, as predicted by NASA.
The international space union is specifically referring to Bennu; a 1,610-foot-wide heavenly body that was discovered way back in 1999.
But, the question is, will humans be still alive when Bennu smashes into the blue planet? Here's what NASA says about this destructive asteroid.
Asteroid With Force of 22 Atomic Bombs Could Hit Earth-Here's When
According to NDTV's latest report, NASA predicted that Bennu will hit Earth on Sept. 24, 2182. Since this is just over 150 years from now, there's a high chance that humans will still be alive that year.
Numerous studies estimated that the human species will still live on Earth for another billion years. However, what are the chances of Bennu smashing into Earth?
NASA said that there's a 1 in 2,700 (0.037%) chance of the gigantic asteroid hitting the blue planet. Although this is less than 1%, a chance is still a chance.
"During the flyby, there is an extremely small chance that Bennu will pass through a 'gravitational keyhole' - a region of space that would set it on just the right path to impact Earth, late in the 22nd century," said NASA.
The aerospace organization said that it is difficult to determine the odds of Bennu hitting Earth. But, thanks to the data from NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft, space experts were able to provide a better model showing how Bennu's orbit will evolve in the next few years.
"Bennu's location in 2182 will vary depending on how the 2135 flyby occurs," explained NASA via its official website.
The space union's Bennu model shows two representations; the first one (shown in white dot) shows Bennu missing the blue planet and the second one (shown in gray dot) represents the extremely unlikely scenario of the asteroid making a direct impact on Earth.
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About the Asteroid Bennu
Sandy Freund, Lockheed Martin OSIRIS-REx Program Manager, looks over a display during a media tour of NASA's first major asteroid sample recovery rehearsal for its OSIRIS-REx (Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and Security Regolith Explorer) mission, at Lockheed Martin.
The Bennu asteroid is estimated to be taller than the Empire State Building. Specifically, NASA claims that it has the force of 22 atomic bombs.
Aside from this, the space organization also believes that the cosmic object is around 24 times more powerful compared to the most formidable nuclear weapon.
NASA said that Bennu comes close to Earth once every six years. It got super close to the planet back in 1999, 2005, and 2011.
Another interesting fact that NASA discovered about the asteroid is that it is a "near-Earth object" since it is rich in carbon.
These are just some of the details you need to know about Bennu. You can click this link to learn more.
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