spacetoday.net: Asteroid impact risk in 2014 eliminated

Posted: Wed, Sep 3, 2003, 11:08 AM ET (1508 GMT)
Asteroid impact illustration (Don Davis/NASA)

Updated orbit calculations based on new observations have eliminated any chance that a newly-discovered asteroid will collide with the Earth in 2014. The asteroid, 2003 QQ47, made headlines on Tuesday after astronomers reported that there was a slight chance of a collision with the Earth in March 2014. Odds of the collision ranged from 1 in 909,000 to 1 in 10.8 million, based on varying calculations. JPL had listed the asteroid as a 1 on the Torino Scale of asteroid impact risk, meaning the body warranted further observations but not concern, although Near Earth Objects Dynamic Site (NEODyS) in Italy had kept the asteroid at a 0 on the scale. The latest observations, however, have eliminated any chance of an impact in 2014, and JPL has reduced the object back to 0 on the Torino Scale.