• News
  • Film and TV
  • Music
  • Tech
  • Features
  • Celebrity
  • Politics
  • Weird
  • Community
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • LADbible
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
TikTok
YouTube
Submit Your Content
Space agency chief warns city-destroying asteroid could be hurtling towards earth now and we have 'no way to detect it'

Home> News> World News

Published 17:46 15 Mar 2025 GMT

Space agency chief warns city-destroying asteroid could be hurtling towards earth now and we have 'no way to detect it'

As if you didn't have enough to worry about

Gerrard Kaonga

Gerrard Kaonga

A massively destructive asteroid could be heading straight for Earth right now, but we don’t have the technology to detect it or prevent it, according to an expert.

Asteroid 2024 YR4 has sparked concern, considering just how seriously NASA and other space agencies are taking the space rock.

The asteroid was only discovered on the back end of last year and is reportedly the size of the statue of Liberty but has the capacity to destroy an entire city if it struck the planet.

Astronomers also believe that 2024 YR4 would create a mid-air explosion after colliding with us, which would be around 8 million tons of TNT, and affect a 50-kilometer radius around the site.

Advert

The collision is expected to happen in 2032 with NASA's Center for Near Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) predicting that the chances of the asteroid colliding with our planet is one-in-43, or to be specific, 2.3 percent out of 100.

The recently discovered asteroid could do immense damage (Getty Stock Image)
The recently discovered asteroid could do immense damage (Getty Stock Image)

However, a scientist who works with the European Space Agency has warned the space rock or another asteroid could already be coming right at the planet.

Luca Conversi, an ESA scientist spoke to the Sun and warned that limitations could mean there are even bigger threats facing the planet and we simply might not know it.

Advert

He said this is because it could be lurking in the Earth’s blind spot. The biggest issue is we still don't have the tech to let us search the space between Earth and the Sun because it is simply too bright.

Conversi said: “There is a chance that something the size of YR4 is approaching from the Sun, but we just haven’t detected it.”

Speaking of the last major asteroid that struck the planet, he said it simply slipped through the net. The asteroid in question is the Chelyabinsk meteor that burnt up and landed in Russia when it entered the Earth’s atmosphere back in 2013.

The scientist warned we don't have the tech to view Earth's 'blindspot' effectively (Getty Stock)
The scientist warned we don't have the tech to view Earth's 'blindspot' effectively (Getty Stock)

Advert

He added: “[It went] completely undetected, because it came from the direction of the Sun.

“It didn’t hit anything - but it triggered a sonic boom which shattered all the windows in the nearby town Chelyabinsk.

“Hundreds of people who were watching through windows in their homes were injured by the shattering glass.”

So, if you were worried about 2024 YR4 striking in a few years, you can add the possibility of an unknown asteroid coming out of our blind spot to your list of fears.

Featured Image Credit: Getty Images/Science Photo Library - ANDRZEJ WOJCICKI

Topics: Earth, Space, NASA, Science, Technology

Gerrard Kaonga
Gerrard Kaonga

Gerrard is a Journalist at UNILAD and has dived headfirst into covering everything from breaking global stories to trending entertainment news. He has a bachelors in English Literature from Brunel University and has written across a number of different national and international publications. Most notably the Financial Times, Daily Express, Evening Standard and Newsweek.

Advert

Advert

Advert

Choose your content:

8 hours ago
10 hours ago
11 hours ago
12 hours ago
  • 8 hours ago

    Diddy denied bail after being found guilty on 2 out of 5 counts in sex trafficking and prostitution case

    Diddy has been denied bail after being found guilty on two of five charges he was facing

    News
  • 10 hours ago

    Donald Trump makes shocking threat he wants to deport US citizens and people are stunned

    Donald Trump has made a threat to deport US citizens following the opening of a migrant centre in Florida

    News
  • 11 hours ago

    Bryan Kohberger speaks for first time in court admitting to how he brutally murdered four Idaho students

    The Idaho murder suspect has spoken out following the brutal murders of four students in 2022

    News
  • 12 hours ago

    Former prosecutor explains why Diddy was found not guilty on 3 out of 5 counts in sex trafficking and prostitution case

    A legal expert has shared his thoughts about why Sean 'Diddy' Combs has been found not guilty of three counts

    News
  • Experts issue urgent warning over city-destroying asteroid that could devastate Earth without direct impact
  • Scientists discover new 'city-destroying' asteroid has a higher chance of hitting Earth than first thought
  • NASA gives major new update on chances 'city-destroying' asteroid could hit Earth in just seven years
  • NASA shares new update on ‘city destroying’ asteroid that was heading towards Earth