Though the chances are low, an asteroid with a diameter of about 160 feet can possibly hit Earth on February 14, 2046. This size can be compared to an Olympic swimming pool, or the width of an average football field. This would definitely not be a nice gift from space to Earth for Valentine’s Day. 

The asteroid has been given the name “2023 DW”. The chances of this huge asteroid hitting Earth is currently said to be a 1 in 560 chance. Predictions can change, but as of right now NASA says that the closest the asteroid should get to Earth is 1.1 million miles. 

If the asteroid does hit Earth, there can be significant damage. 

10 years ago, a meteor hit an area of Russia. This meteor was about less than half the size of 2023 DW. The precise location it had hit was Chelyabinsk, Russia. When this meteor exploded, it caused quite a lot of damage for its smaller size. A shock wave came as a result of the explosion. 

The shock wave blew out windows up to 200 square miles beyond the initial hit of the meteor. This devastating event also injured approximately 1,500 people in the area. As stated earlier, this meteor is smaller than 2023 DW. Regardless of its smaller size, the meteor in Russia caused a lot of catastrophe. It is scary for people to think about how severe a larger asteroid hitting Earth would be. 

In fact, despite small possibilities, an asteroid hitting Earth still sparks great concern to NASA. NASA wants to make sure they have the appropriate preparations if something like this would happen. They have been setting up these preparations for years now. 

NASA shared that last October, they had a mission called the “Double Asteroid Redirection Test”. They slammed a spacecraft into a tiny asteroid to change the asteroid’s direction of movement. This mission ended up being a great success and worked!

On social media, such as Tik Tok, the community has said that if the asteroid did hit Earth, it would be around the Los Angeles, California vicinity. It would honestly not be a huge shock if a movie inspired by 2023 DW will become the next Hollywood hit. 

Overall, the word “asteroid” is scary on its own. It must be remembered that predictions will change over the course of time, and the probability of 2023 DW hitting us is slim.