Revealed: The 6 catastrophic asteroids on course to crash into Earth - as a 'surprise' space rock burns up over the Philippines
- Experts reveal the asteroids with the highests chances of destroying humanity
- One asteroid has a chance of hitting Earth by October 5 this year
- READ MORE: Watch moment asteroid hits Earth's atmosphere like a ball of fire
Scientists around the world were caught off guard on Wednesday as a previously undetected asteroid collided with Earth's atmosphere.
The one metre (3ft) wide asteroid was spotted just eight hours before it burned up over the Philippines in a spectacular fireball.
Luckily, the asteroid, named 2024 RW1, was too small to cause any damage.
However, its sudden arrival is a stark reminder of the dangers lurking within our solar system.
From the so-called 'Valentine's Day asteroid' to the deadly space rocks almost a mile wide, experts warn that several asteroids are at risk of smashing into Earth.
From the so-called 'Valentine's Day asteroid' to the deadly space rocks almost a mile wide, experts warn that several asteroids are at risk of smashing into Earth
Scientists around the world were caught off guard on Wednesday as a previously undetected asteroid collided with Earth's atmosphere
Asteroids colliding with Earth is far from an uncommon event.
In fact, NASA estimates that about 48.5 tonnes of meteoric material falls on Earth each day.
However, the vast majority of these objects simply burn up in the atmosphere to produce the flashing lights we recognise as shooting stars.
Objects large enough to punch through the atmosphere and actually collide with Earth are far rarer and don't often come within Earth's orbit.
Of course, just because asteroid collisions are unlikely, it does not mean they are impossible - and Earth already bears the scars of several such events.
Most famously, 66 million years ago a six-mile-wide (9.65km) asteroid crashed into the Yucatán peninsula in Mexico - wiping out the dinosaurs and leaving behind a 115-mile (185km) wide crater.
Even smaller rocks can have a devastating impact, as shown by the Chelyabinsk meteor, a 59 ft (18m) wide asteroid which exploded over Russia in 2013.
Despite being hundreds of times smaller than the meteor that killed the dinosaurs, the resulting shockwave injured 1,500 and damaged 7,300 buildings.
Due to these risks, NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) operate programs aimed at identifying, categorising, and tracking so-called Near Earth Objects (NEOs).
Currently, ESA has 1,634 NEOs on its 'risk list' - meaning that there is a non-zero chance these objects will hit Earth.
However, at present no asteroid is ranked above one on the Torino Scale - a chart which ranges from 0 (won't hit Earth) to 10 (will hit Earth, and will be catastrophic).
The Earth has been hit by devastating asteroids in the past such as the Chicxulub asteroid, which slammed into a shallow sea in what is now the Gulf of Mexico around 66 million years ago, creating an explosion that wiped out the dinosaurs
Experts say that another asteroid impact with Earth is a matter of when, not if (stock image)
1. Bennu
Discovered in September 1999, the asteroid Bennu is currently considered to pose one of the biggest risks to Earth.
At 1,574ft (0.49km) in diameter and weighing 67 million tonnes, Bennu is wider than the Empire State Building is tall and weighs 200 times as much.
Thanks to careful observation by NASA, scientists currently believe that Bennu has a one in 2,700 chance of hitting Earth on September 24, 2182.
If it were to collide with the planet, it would release energy equivalent to 1.4 billion tonnes of TNT.
Professor Dante Lauretta of the University of Arizona previously said that an impact with Bennu would release 'three times more energy than all nuclear weapons detonated throughout history'.
While this might not be quite enough to create the type of planet-destroying force which wiped out the dinosaurs it could still lead to millions of deaths.
The asteroid Bennu (pictured) is considered to pose the biggest threat to Earth and could hit our planet within the next 200 years
However, before you head to the bunkers, NASA's predictions of impact chance become more accurate the closer the asteroid comes to Earth.
So, with more than 150 years until its next close approach, it is likely that those odds may change quite significantly in the future.
Due to its size and risk to Earth, the asteroid has been the attention of intense scientific study.
In 2023, NASA's OSIRIS REx spacecraft managed to return a sample of the space rock to Earth.
This revealed that Bennu may contain the building blocks of life - including possible sources of water.
2. 2023 DW - The Valentine's Day asteroid
Forgetting the chocolates and flowers on Valentine's Day 2046 might be the least of your worries.
The asteroid 2023 DW is predicted to have a significant chance of colliding with Earth on February 14, 2046 - just in time to ruin your date plans.
At 166ft (50m) across, 2023 DW is about the same size as the asteroid that caused the devastating Chelyabinsk event back in 2013.
The Valentine's Day asteroid, 2023 DW, (pictured) has a slim possibility of hitting Earth on February 14, 2046
Given that the asteroid has been observed moving at 21.78 km/s relative to the sun, it could hit Earth with enough force to level an entire city.
When it was initially discovered, space agencies gave this collision worryingly strong odds of one in 607.
However, with more careful observation that risk has now been considerably lowered.
Last year Richard Moissl, head of the ESA's planetary defence office, further reduced the odds of the asteroid hitting Earth from one in 784 to one in 1,584.
Moissi previously told MailOnline: 'It will go down now with every observation until it reaches zero in a couple of days at the latest. No one needs to be worried about this guy.'
The 165-foot (50 m) space rock was given a one in 560 chance of impact but experts say it is now almost certain to miss the Earth
3. 1950 DA
For NASA to consider something a 'potentially hazardous object', it needs to be 460 feet (140 meters) in size with an orbit that brings it as close as within 4.6 million miles (7.5 million kilometres) of Earth's orbit around the Sun.
At 4,265ft (1.3km) in diameter and weighing 71 million tonnes, asteroid 1950 DA is over 90 times that size.
This makes 1950 DA the biggest asteroid that has a serious chance of colliding with our planet.
If it were to hit, the collision would release energy equivalent to detonating 75 billion tons of TNT - enough to trigger a global catastrophe like the one that wiped out the dinosaurs.
Currently, the asteroid is believed to have a one in 34,500 chance of hitting Earth on March 16, 2880.
In 2032, it will come within 6,959,357 miles (112,000,000 km) of Earth - a relatively close pass allowing for further observations.
NASA and ESA have already begun testing methods for pushing dangerous asteroids off course including slamming high-speed satellites into their surfaces.
Over the eight generations until 1950 DA reached Earth, a small disturbance could easily send it a safe distance from Earth.
A NASA spokesperson previously told MailOnline: 'If it is eventually decided 1950 DA needs to be diverted, the hundreds of years of warning could allow a method as simple as dusting the surface of the asteroid with chalk or charcoal, or perhaps white glass beads, or sending a solar sail spacecraft that ends by collapsing its reflective sail around the asteroid.
'These things would change the asteroid reflectivity and allow sunlight to do the work of pushing the asteroid out of the way.'
The asteroid 1950 DA has the potential to wipe out life on Earth. Based on its predicted orbit (pictured) the asteroid has a 1 in 34,500 chance of hitting Earth on March 16, 2880
4. 2023 TL4
Another asteroid which also has humanity-destroying potential is 2023 TL4.
After being spotted last year, scientists immediately recognised this huge asteroid as one of the biggest threats to Earth.
The space rock measures 1,083ft (0.33km) in diameter and is believed to weigh 43 million tonnes - more than 4,500 times the weight of the Eiffel Tower.
On collision, this could create a blast 150 times more powerful than that of the Tsar Bomba, the most powerful nuclear weapon ever detonated.
Current estimates suggest that there is a one in 181,000 chance of this asteroid colliding with Earth on October 10, 2119.
Just like 1950 DA, this should give space agencies enough time to push the asteroid off its course, should it appear to be on its way to Earth.
The space rock 2023 TL4 measures 1,083ft (0.33km) in diameter and is believed to weigh 43 million tonnes - more than 4,500 times the weight of the Eiffel Tower. Its orbit (pictured) will bring it dangerously close to Earth in 2119
5. 2007 FT3
While the odds of 2007 FT3 hitting Earth are low, it has the unwelcome distinction of being the asteroid with the chance of hitting Earth soonest.
If we get incredibly unlucky, this 2,165ft (0.34km) asteroid could hit Earth as soon as October 5th this year.
However, current observations of 2007 FT3's path give this only a one in 11.5 million chance of occurring.
The asteroid has slightly better odds of colliding with Earth on March 3, 2030, with a one in 10 million chance.
Although that may seem low, the odds of winning the Lotto jackpot are one in 45 million and many people still buy tickets each week.
Since the odds are higher than zero, the object is still on ESA's risk list and is considered a potentially hazardous object.
The asteroid 2007 FT3 could hit Earth as soon as October this year, however the odds are only one in 11.5 million
6. 1979 XB
The final object with a chance of causing serious damage to Earth is an asteroid called 1979 XB.
At 2,165ft (0.34km) in diameter and weighing 49 million tonnes, should 1979 XB hit Earth, it would easily be capable of destroying an entire city.
First spotted in 1979, scientists believe that this asteroid currently has a one in 1.8 million chance of hitting Earth.
What makes 1979 XB scary is that it has essentially been 'lost' since its discovery.
No one has observed 1979 XB in 40 years and so its orbit is poorly understood.
What predictions we do have are based on the initial observations taken immediately after its discovery.
Given that Earth was just hit by a previously undetected asteroid, this might leave many feeling understandably anxious.
The asteroid 1979 XB is scarier than most since it has been 'lost' for 40 years. The predictions we have of its orbit (pictured) are only based on observations taken shortly after its discovery which makes its true danger a mystery
How much danger are we really in?
Despite how scary these figures may seem, most scientists agree that the Earth is safe for now.
Dr Greg Brown, senior public astronomy officer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich, told MailOnline: 'As of today, there are no known asteroids that are both large enough to be of concern and have a sizeable chance to impact the Earth.'
If any asteroids do hit Earth it is likely that they will fall over the ocean or over the remote regions which still make up the majority of the planet's surface.
This renders the risk of any serious devastation from a meteoric impact extremely low.
However, that does not mean that the Earth is completely safe.
While the risk of a collision remains extremely low, scientists warn that some sort of dangerous encounter is inevitable in the very long run. This is why space agencies are investing in planetary defence systems (artist's impression)
While big impacts are very rare, Dr Brown points out that 'asteroid impacts are a case of when, not if.'
That is why space agencies around the world are investing huge funds into planetary defence projects.
These include ESA's DART mission which managed to knock an asteroid off course with kamikaze satellite in 2022.
Dr Brown adds: 'It is important that we continue to improve our ability to track these objects and work on measures to protect ourselves if they occur.'
