New Delhi: On 27 June 2026, an asteroid measuring between 710 metres and 1.6 km wide will approach within 2,565,816 kilometres of the Earth, or 6.6 times
the distance between the Earth and the Moon. The asteroid belongs to a family of Earth-crossing asteroids with an orbit smaller than that of the Earth. The asteroid, designated as 152637 (1997 NC1) is a frequent visitor to both the Venus and the Earth. It had previously made a close approach to Earth in July 2022, and will be making a close approach to Venus next towards the end of the year. The asteroid will safely hurtle past the Earth at a tremendous speed of 8.87 km per second, which is enough to move from Delhi to Jaipur within half a minute.
The orbit of the asteroid 1997 NC1. (Image Credit: NASA).
1997 NC1 is designated as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA), with a chance of impacting the Earth in the distant future. No large threatening asteroid is on a trajectory for an Earth impact for at least the next few centuries. It is a stony asteroid composed primarily of silicates. Despite the tremendous velocity, 1997 NC1 is moving relatively slowly for an asteroid, reducing the destructiveness of the impact. Here is what would happen if 1997 NC1 would strike Connaught Place in New Delhi.
Asteroid 1997 NC1 Impact Scenario
The asteroid is large enough to reach the ground, impacting the surface at eight km/s and creating a crater 9.5 kilometres wide and 580 metres deep. The energy released would be the equivalent of 10 Gigatons of TNT. An impact of comparable magnitude occurs about once every 145,000 years. The 241 decibel shockwave would flatten buildings within 100 km. About 6.7 million people would be vapourised during the crater formation, about 15.3 million would die from the shock wave, another 12.4 million people would die from the wind blast, with another 100,000 people dying from an Earthquake that would be felt 232 km away. The total death count would be 34.5 million people.
