Huge Asteroid is About to Hit the Earth! Should You Be Worried?

A Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA) that is big enough to cause catastrophe is approaching Earth, NASA announced.

The asteroid, which has a codename of "Asteroid 1998 HL 1," was photographed on a distance of five million miles away from Earth. According to Gianluca Masi of Virtual Telescope Project, who took the picture, the asteroid will come even closer a few days from now on October 25. 

The Asteroid HL1 is said to be approaching the planet with a speed of at least 11.21km per second or about 40,365 km per hour. 

The estimated size of HL1 is around 440 meters to 990 meters, according to NASA's asteroid trackers in California. The rock is so big that it is visible even on the lower-grade telescope that can be purchased cheaply by star enthusiasts. 

That size is said to be huge enough to cause global damage if it entered the Earth.

But should we worry?

According to NASA, there is no asteroid or comet currently on a position that has a huge probability for a major collision even for the next several hundred years. This means you can come out with your 200mm telescope to observe the asteroid that is as big as a skyscraper as it passes by Earth on October 25 safely.

The asteroid will miss the planet by at least 6.2 million kilometers or at least 16 times the distance of the moon from us.

The asteroid was first discovered in 1998 by astronomers at the Lincoln Near-Earth Asteroid Research (LINEAR) project at Socorro, New Mexico.

The asteroid that caused "mini ice age"

Earlier this month, scientists have undercovered some proofs that linked asteroid collision to the "mini ice age" about 12,800 years ago. 

According to the theory, a huge asteroid that entered the Earth sent plumes of dust to the atmosphere, which blocked the sun's light and warmth. Because of this, the Earth cooled down. 

Plants died after they failed to undergo photosynthesis. Many animals became extinct after, including mammoths and giant wildebeests.

The phenomenon was called "The Younger Dryas," and the theory behind the asteroid was first presented in 2007. Multiple Evidence have soon followed, including this recent discovery led by Prof. Francis Thackeray.

Scientists have discovered at least 30 areas with "platinum spike", including the latest one located at Wonderkrater in the Limpopo Province, Pretoria, in South Africa. According to scientists, platinum is pretty rare on Earth but quite abundant on asteroids.

According to Prof. Thackeray, their discovery has been consistent with The Younger Dryas Impact Hypothesis.

The findings can be found in the journal of evolutionary studies Palaeontologia Africana.