this post was submitted on 20 Feb 2025
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Summary

NASA has lowered the estimated risk of asteroid 2024 YR4 striking Earth in December 2032 to 1.5%, down from 3.1% a day earlier. The European Space Agency's (ESA) estimate stands at 1.38%.

The asteroid, 40-90 meters wide, could cause significant city-level destruction but not a global catastrophe.

The projected impact corridor spans the Pacific, South America, Africa, and South Asia.

NASA also estimates a 0.8% chance of the asteroid hitting the Moon.

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[–] [email protected] 48 points 1 month ago (2 children)

So you're tell me there's a chance?

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 month ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago

I'm a Powerball man...

Those are great odds!

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 month ago

Sure hope so!

[–] [email protected] 44 points 1 month ago (1 children)

What do we need to get this to %100?

[–] [email protected] 26 points 1 month ago (1 children)

It's probably made up of dense materials like iron. Let's pile all the earth's magnets at the White House!

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 month ago

I'll give mine, as long as someone helps with the shipping!

[–] [email protected] 26 points 1 month ago (2 children)

Keep looking, there's got to be something out there that can hit us!

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (3 children)

I'm not sure if you saw the recent news but we have a possible new mummy curse, never give up hope

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago

I haven't seen that. That's a new one. Lets go!

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Yeah, but mummies can be friendly.. asteroids are a sure thing. Just ask the dinosaurs.

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[–] [email protected] 22 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (4 children)

As someone who's played MMOs, 1.5% chance is actually pretty high.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 month ago

As someone who's played XCom, a 1.5% chance of a bad thing (questionable) means it's gonna critically hit

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago

As someone who played Ragnarok Online extensively, 1.5% for a single monster kill means I will never find that item.

Not to mention cards’ .01% drop rate ugh

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[–] [email protected] 16 points 1 month ago (5 children)

Everyone hoping there's still a chance, you need to remember... this is only a city-killer asteroid.

We need to hope for a much bigger asteroid.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 month ago (4 children)

As long as it falls on the right city, it would do the entire world a massive, once in 500 years favor.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 month ago (2 children)

Unfortunately North America doesn't fall under the possible impact zone

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 month ago

More proof that there's no god.

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[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 month ago

Would have been funny if it hit Buenos aires

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago

If the alien movies serve us correctly, this is luckily going to hit the USA; possibly Washington DC directly.

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[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 month ago (2 children)

Reminder that the asteroid is only large enough to destroy a city and, even given the rare chance of it hitting Earth, in all likelihood would land in the ocean and cause no damage. It's not a doomsday asteroid

[–] [email protected] 18 points 1 month ago (1 children)

imagine if it falls and perfectly annihilates the trump administration though

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Unfortunately, Washington is outside of the possible impact zone. (Well, Washington in Brazil is inside, but it's not about that one.)

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 month ago

DART successfully moved an astroid that was probably way bigger!

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[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (1 children)

Can we please not post daily updates? This is still 7 years away

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 month ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago

I am down to have monthly updates for the next few years, weekly updates through 2031, and daily updates throughout 2032

I just feel like if we do daily updates for the next 7 years when it's in all likelihood going to miss us, we'll be too complacent when an asteroid does have an impact trajectory

[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 month ago

Well, that's disappointing..

[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 month ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 month ago

🙏🙏🙏

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Bets on it being totally ignored by the world if it turns out to be aimed at Africa?

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 month ago

Africa actually does seem to be the most likely impact if it were to hit. The predicted impact would be along the equator.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 month ago

Just give us the confidence interval and stop updating. We will know better in January 2029 once it has passed by and been tugged by our gravity and the moons.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 month ago
[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 month ago

So you're telling me there's still a chance

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Giant Meteor for Earth President 2032!

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 month ago

Why wait? The best time would have been the dawn of civilization. The second best time is now.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 month ago (1 children)

The global astronomical community expects the odds of an asteroid to hit Earth in December 2032 to eventually fall to zero.

I love how they make it seem like some insider expertise versus knowing basics of how percentages work.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 month ago

I mean, without knowing what the number represents, it's not obvious why it goes up and then suddenly drops like this.

They basically predict a cross-section of places it could go through, which shrinks with improved data. If the Earth is still inside, that makes it's share go up. Eventually, it hits an edge and the share drops to zero suddenly

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 month ago

Damn. The bugs need to up their accuracy

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 month ago

Dontgivemehope.meme

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 month ago
[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 month ago

Is this the new seven minutes to midnight? We're 1.5% to asteroid.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 month ago
[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 month ago (2 children)

I feel like hitting the moon could fuck us up even worse long term, with effects on the ocean?

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 month ago

Much much much much larger objects have hit the moon in the past

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago (5 children)

Well we'd lose the tides, which would devastate ocean life. We'd lose moonlight, which would devastate nocturnal animals. The axial tilt would change, so seasons would become more even, devastating plants that rely on seasonal cycles, or become more extreme, devastating everything.

The book Seveneves explores this scenario, but is mostly about how humanity moves to space to survive.

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[–] scaramobo 2 points 1 month ago

There is this fun toy see/calculate the potential effect of any asteroid collision: https://neal.fun/asteroid-launcher/

If it hits any city, that is wiped out. If it hit anything else, chances are damages are moderate.

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