Asteroid 'could hit Earth' on eve of US election, says Neil deGrasse Tyson

The celebrity astrophysicist has said it "won't be the fault of the universe" if the world ends in 2020 -- the asteroid is roughly the size of a fridge, and "not big enough to cause harm".
Charles Sykes/Invision/AP

An asteroid hurtling towards Earth at 25,000mph could strike the planet on the eve of the US general election, according to Neil deGrasse Tyson.

But the celebrity astrophysicist has said it "won't be the fault of the universe" if the world ends in 2020 -- the asteroid is roughly the size of a fridge, and "not big enough to cause harm".

According to NASA, the asteroid named 2018VP1 has a one in 240 chance of clipping our planet on November 2.

Mr deGrasse Tyson, beloved for his series Cosmos, wrote on Instagram: “Asteroid 2018VP1, a refrigerator-sized space-rock, is hurtling towards us at more than 25,000 mi/hr.

“It may buzz-cut Earth on Nov. 2, the day before the Presidential Election.

“But it’s not big enough to cause harm. So if the World ends in 2020, it won’t be the fault of the Universe.”

2018VP1 is seven feet in diameter. and NASA estimates that it weighs about 35,273lbs.

In comparison, the asteroid thought to be have triggered the dinosaur extinction event was at least six miles in diameter on impact.

The asteroid currently hurtling towards Earth was discovered by the Paloma Observatory, California, in 2018 while it was around 280,000 miles away from Earth.

The asteroid will likely come as close as between 4,700 miles and 260,000 miles of Earth.

NASA Asteroid Watch tweeted to its 1.2million followers: “Asteroid 2018VP1 is very small, approx. 6.5 feet, and poses no threat to Earth! It currently has a 0.41 per cent chance of entering our planet’s atmosphere, but if it did, it would disintegrate due to its extremely small size.”

Bill Bottke, director of the department of space studies at the Southwest Research Institute, said asteroids this small hit the Earth several times per year.

"There is nothing particularly alarming about this one, it just happens to be one we were lucky enough to detect before it makes a close encounter," he said.

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