NASA shares major update on “city killer” asteroid it considered nuking

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NASA recently shared new information about the large asteroid 2024 YR4, which some initially called a “city killer.” This update has calmed concerns, as scientists had previously discussed the possibility of using nuclear weapons to deflect it.

Discovered in December 2024, the asteroid – about 200 feet across – initially raised concerns about a potential impact with Earth in 2032. While the chance of a collision was small, it was significant enough to cause widespread destruction if the asteroid were to hit.

Okay, so thankfully experts said this thing wasn’t going to hit Earth, but we were still keeping an eye on it. There was a chance it could crash into the Moon when it made a really close approach in December 2032, and I didn’t want to miss that if it happened!

If the asteroid hit the Moon traveling over 29,000 miles per hour, the impact would create an explosion about 500 times stronger than the Hiroshima atomic bomb. This would send around 10,000 tons of rock flying off the Moon and into space.

NASA once calculated there was roughly a 4.3% chance of something hitting the Moon, which led to discussions about whether scientists should try to prevent it.

Now, new observations have dramatically changed that outlook.

NASA rules out Moon collision

Thanks to new data from the James Webb Space Telescope collected in February 2026, astronomers now have a much clearer understanding of where the asteroid 2024 YR4 will be. The latest calculations confirm that it won’t hit the Moon when it passes close by in 2032, according to NASA.

Instead, the asteroid is expected to pass the Moon safely at a distance of roughly 13,200 miles.

This effectively removes any immediate threat posed by the object to both Earth and the Moon.

Why scientists considered “nuking” the asteroid

Before scientists determined the asteroid wouldn’t hit Earth, they had been investigating ways to protect the planet if it posed a threat.

Okay, so I was reading about this crazy plan scientists thought up. Basically, if an asteroid was heading for Earth and we didn’t have much time, they considered using a nuke – either to blow it to pieces or nudge it off course. They figured traditional methods, like sending a spaceship to push it, might just be too slow if things suddenly got really urgent. It’s a last-ditch, super-risky idea, but they wanted to have options!

The worry wasn’t simply about a hole in the Moon. Scientists cautioned that a crash could send a lot of space junk flying, which might damage satellites around Earth or cause a brief meteor shower.

While the asteroid initially caught the attention of scientists who monitor potential threats to Earth, NASA now confirms that it won’t come close to hitting our planet or the Moon.

That doesn’t mean that an asteroid that could cause major cataclysmic issues isn’t coming, however.

NASA says there’s currently no major asteroid—anything bigger than 140 meters—expected to hit Earth in the next century. However, they’ve only located around 40% of these near-Earth asteroids so far.

This asteroid, nicknamed the “city killer,” highlights the importance of astronomers monitoring objects near Earth. Recent observations have shown that what initially seemed like a potential danger is actually just a harmless pass by our planet.

Last year, a mysterious object from outside our solar system, called 3I/ATLAS, captured the attention of scientists. Harvard astrophysicist Avi Loeb raised concerns about it, even suggesting to the United Nations that Earth might not be ready for potential contact with extraterrestrial life.

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2026-03-06 22:19