Astronomers discovered a hidden planet-killer asteroid that could cross Earth's path in the future, but they aren't sure when.
, is named 2022 AP7. It was spotted using the Dark Energy Camera on the Victor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope during a brief window of twilight.
While it could pose some risk to Earth in the future, the hidden planet-killer asteroid is currently not passing anywhere near our planet. Instead, astronomers believe that its current orbit will have it crossing Earth’s path when we are on the opposite side of the Sun. However, over the years, the asteroid’s orbit will bring it closer and closer to our planet as it crosses closer to where our planet is.that astronomers have discovered since 2014, the team behind the new research says.
What makes this asteroid so dangerous is its over 1km size. The researchers estimate the diameter of the asteroid to be around 1.1km to 2.3km. At that size, the hidden planet-killer asteroid would cause dust and pollutants to be expelled into the air on impact. These clouds would then essentially block sunlight from getting to the planet, cooling the surface of Earth significantly., the pollutants would fill the air for years, leading to mass extinction on several levels.
Of course, proving just how big this hidden planet-kill asteroid actually is is actually rather difficult. That’s because the glare from the Sun makes it hard to spot these asteroids, and even when observing them at twilight, the sunlight is still quite bright, making it hard to see. Still, even if the asteroid is large enough to cause massive damage to our planet, it isn’t something we have to worry about yet.
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