Astronomers Say Asteroid Could Damage Earth in 2022

Astronomers have discovered an asteroid flying through space that could crash into the Earth in 2022, The New York Times reported Tuesday.

Although astronomers say the chance of a collision is about 1 in 1 million, more observations are needed to better calculate the asteroid’s orbit and rule out a collision, the Times said.

The asteroid, 2000 BF19, is the fifth one discovered in the last two years that could collide with Earth. It is about a half-mile (800 meters) wide and could do tremendous damage to part of the Earth if it struck but probably would not cause planet-wide destruction according to the Times article.

The asteroid was first spotted by three astronomers led by Dr. James Scotti using the Spacewatch Telescope on Kitt Peak in Arizona on January 28.