3 'Invisible' City-Killing Asteroids Could Strike Earth Within Weeks- All You Need to Know

Three "invisible" city killer asteroids hidden in the glare of the Sun, orbiting near Venus could strike Earth within weeks, according to an alarming research published in the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics.

The study warns of the danger posed by three large asteroids—2020 SB, 524522, and 2002 CL1—which currently share an orbit with Venus and are hidden in the Sun’s glare, making them nearly impossible to detect with Earth-based telescopes.

According to the study, the asteroids "have unstable orbits that bring them dangerously close to Earth"

Led by Valerio Carruba of São Paulo State University in Brazil, the international research team explains that while these asteroids do not presently threaten Venus, even a minor gravitational disturbance could shift their paths toward Earth, which could potentially result in catastrophe.

Study says that if one were to strike, the impact could create a crater more than 3 kilometres wide and release energy up to a million times greater than the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima. Because their orbits keep them hidden in the Sun’s glare, detection would likely come with very little warning.

The Chilean Rubin Observatory, which observes similar threats, would only have two to four weeks' notice before one of the asteroids hit. This is concerning because planning and executing a mission to deflect an asteroid typically takes years to formulate.

The authors concluded that "Low-e Venus co-orbitals pose a unique challenge because of the difficulties in detecting and following these objects from Earth."

The Solution

The study suggests that the only effective way to detect these hidden, potentially dangerous asteroids is with a dedicated observational campaign from a space mission positioned near Venus. 

“We believe that only a dedicated observational campaign from a space-based mission near Venus could potentially map and discover all the still ‘invisible’ PHA (potentially hazardous asteroids) among Venus’ co-orbital asteroids,” the authors wrote.