An astronomer has claimed an
asteroid the size of the Statue of
Liberty is on a collision course with
earth.
Dr Judit Györgyey-Ries, astronomer
at the University of Texas' McDonald
Observatory, believes the giant rock
could create a huge impact when it
reaches earth in around October
2017.
Scientists estimate Asteroid 2012
TC4 is around 40-metres wide and
could cause even more chaos than
the one which hospitalised more than
1,200 people when it exploded over
Russia in February 2013
.
Dr Györgyey-Ries told astronomy
website astrowatch.net: "We could
see an airburst maybe broken
windows, depending on where it hits.
The giant asteroid narrowly missed
earth in October 2012 when it passed
94,800km away.
Detlef Koschny, head of the near-
earth object segment at the European
Space Agency, said: "There is a one
in a million chance that it could hit
us.
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"The size was estimated from the
brightness, but we don't know the
reflectivity. So it could be smaller or
larger, assume from 10 to 40 metres.
"A 40m iron object would go through
the atmosphere and make a crater; a
10m rocky object would hardly be
noticed."
Shock waves from the Russia airburst
smashed windows, rattled buildings,
and knocked people off their feet,
more than 1,200 of whom attended
hospital.
Researchers visiting villages in the
area found a region of shock-wave
damage extending some 50 miles on
either side of the meteor's trajectory
path.


Source: www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/asteroid-size-statue-liberty-on-5515171?ICID=FB_mirror_main