Is it possible to detect all incoming asteroids before they collide with Earth?

The sudden discovery of asteroid 2024 RW1 this week, just hours before it harmlessly collided with Earth, may have some wondering if there’s a risk that even larger space rocks could appear out of nowhere and cause catastrophic damage. Thankfully, our ability to track asteroids is improving, even if we may never be able to capture them all.

“We think we know over 90 percent of asteroids that are about one kilometer in diameter. One kilometer is not big enough to destroy a planet, but it is thought to be large enough to destroy entire regions or continents,” Ian Carnelli said.