An important announcement has been made regarding asteroid 2024 YR4, which was heading towards Earth: what's new?

Astronomers continue to closely monitor the asteroid 2024 YR4, which, according to recent statements, could collide with Earth, reports The New York Times.

However, NASA's latest announcement indicates that the likelihood of the asteroid colliding with our planet has dropped to zero.

"I anticipated that the threat would diminish as we continue to gather data," says David Farnocchia, a navigation engineer at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

On December 27, astronomers reported the discovery of asteroid 2024 YR4. At that time, scientists estimated that the probability of it colliding with Earth was over 1%. It's worth noting that this is the only known large asteroid with such a high probability of collision.

As scientists collected more data about the object, the likelihood of collision increased throughout January and February, peaking at 3.1% on Tuesday last week, up from 1.2%.

While this probability may seem small, it was higher than any ever recorded by NASA for an object of this size or larger.

2024 YR4, measuring between 40 and 100 meters wide, is large enough to potentially obliterate an entire city. Early trajectory estimates indicated that it could crash into or explode in the air over major metropolises, including Mumbai, India, and Lagos, Nigeria.

However, the day after the 3.1% forecast, the likelihood of 2024 YR4 impacting Earth began to decline, falling to 1.5% by February 19, and then to 0.3% the following day. In its penultimate statement, NASA reported that the probability of the asteroid hitting Earth had decreased to 0.004%, or one in 25,000.

Now scientists state that the chance of catastrophe has dropped to one in 59,000.

The collision probability has changed over the past two months as astronomers gathered more information about the asteroid using ground-based telescopes. With an increased amount of data, the asteroid's flight trajectory became clearer, allowing scientists to confirm that the cosmic rock does not pose a threat to Earth.

"This is a normal situation that is quite expected when you first discover an asteroid. It's just the scientific process in action," Farnocchia added.

Although Earth may have avoided an asteroid impact, NASA stated that there is a small chance—about 1.7%—that 2024 YR4 could strike our Moon, creating yet another crater on its surface.

The agency continues to monitor the asteroid from observatories around the world, including the Lowell Discovery Telescope in Arizona and the Nordic Optical Telescope in the Canary Islands. By the end of April, 2024 YR4 will be out of our sight until 2028.

Recall that scientists captured an image of a large asteroid that may soon fall to Earth. At the end of January, one of the major astronomical news stories was the report that asteroid 2024 YR4, estimated to be 55 meters in size, could collide with Earth at the end of 2032.