The world as we know it could end on August 26, 2032.
A 1,300-foot wide asteroid is headed toward Earth and could strike the planet with the force of 2,500 nuclear warheads in 19 years, Ukrainian astronomers have shockingly revealed.
Crimean Astrophysical Observatory found the massive asteroid, called 2013 TV135, last weekend and the international scientific community has already rated it as one of the two most dangerous asteroids ever recorded.
Still, the chances of the object striking Earth are very low, estimated at 1 in 63,000. That means there’s a 99.9984 percent chance that life on the planet will continue as normal.
If the asteroid misses, it is likely to pass very close to Earth – within 1million miles of the planet’s orbit, Russian news agency RIA Novosti reports.
As a result, NASA has deemed the object ‘potentially hazardous.’
Scientists have also given it a danger rating of 1 out of 10 on the Torino Scale. Only one other asteroid has been given a rating of 1. The risk for all others has been judged 0, negligible.
If 2013 TV135 were to collide with Earth, it is estimated to impact with 2,500 megatons of explosive power. The standard U.S. Minute Man II missiles carries a nuclear warhead with an explosive power of a little over 1 megaton.
The effects of an impact would be catastrophic, especially if it struck a populated area.
The asteroid, however, is much smaller than the interplanetary object that hit Earth and killed off the dinosaurs 65million years ago. That asteroid was estimated to be 6 miles in diameter.
After Ukrainian scientists spotted the object last weekend, astronomers at observatories in Spain, Italy and Siberia, Russia, confirmed the existence of 2013 TV135.
The asteroid will be closer in 2024, allowing scientists to better examine its orbit and where it would be likely to hit.
