Report – Asteroid Big Enough to Wipe Out Missouri Could Hit Earth

I've got good news and bad news. First, the bad news is that scientists have just revealed an asteroid has been detected that's big enough to wipe out the state of Missouri. The good news? Well, it really isn't good news after all. I'll explain.

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I saw this report from The Hill today which talks about Asteroid Bennu 2135/2182. Bennu is a big rock about a third of a mile wide and current projections show a problem. Bennu 2135/2182 has a really good chance of impacting Earth. Here's a graphic shared by NASA.

They're saying as of this writing there's a 1 in 2,700 chance of Bennu impacting Earth and they say it's big enough that if it hit the state of Missouri, there would be no more Missouri. As a matter of fact, they say it's big enough to wipe out a state as big as Texas.

So what's the good news?

Well, not really good news, but better news for you as you'll likely not be alive to see it happen. The projected impact date is September 24, 2182.

As you might guess, NASA is studying this asteroid hard saying:

NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft have allowed scientists to better model how Bennu’s orbit will evolve over time, and to better calculate the probability of an impact.

Once Bennu passes by Earth a few more times, they'll be able to pinpoint the trajectory more and see if this big asteroid really will ruin Earth's day in September of 2182 or not. Now, if you see Bruce Willis and Ben Affleck go up in a space shuttle, you'll know why.