Asteroid! What will HamSCI monitor on 22 December 2032?

Asteroid! What will HamSCI monitor on 22 December 2032?

The near-Earth asteroid 2024 YR4, as seen by the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope in January 2025, shortly after the object was discovered in December 2024. As of January 29, 2025, the asteroid has an almost 99 percent chance of safely passing Earth on December 22, 2032, but a possible impact cannot yet be entirely ruled out.ESO/O. Hainaut et al. (CC BY 4.0)
Tuesday, February 4, 2025 - 10:34

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/will-asteroid-2024-yr24-strike-earth-in-2032/

 

The space news for 27 December 2024 is asteroid 2024 YR4.  It's heading this way, or at least roughly this way, with a current low estimated probability of Earth impact on December 22, 2032.  That estimate will almost certainly be reduced by there won't be much data with which to do that until 2028.

 

Editorial view from AD8Y, then, is that perhaps there will be some interesting radio phenomena to measure when the asteroid misses.  From this time of writing (Groundhog's Day 2025), the near-pass is about as temporally distant as the 2024 eclipse was from the 2017 one.  The event is unique.  What might we prepare?  What data should we be seeking to collect?

 

Let's talk about it...

 

73,

 

David AD8Y

 

An illustration of an asteroid approaching Earth. James Thew/Alamy Stock Photo