They photographed the rock star ahead of its world tour.
A Chilean space telescope has captured striking images of YR4 2024, the “city-killer” asteroid that’s potentially on a collision course with Earth.
“Only a few asteroids have been studied like this,” Bryce Bolin, a NASA astronomer involved in the photo-op, told Space.com of the capturing the space-rock, which reportedly has a one-in-48 chance of impacting our planet in seven years.
The photos were recorded on February 7 by the Gemini South Telescope, a powerful, 26-foot space-spotting device located on a mountain in the Chilean Andes.
They reportedly show slightly grainy images of the interstellar projectile, which is estimated to measure between 131 and 295 feet wide — around the size of a building.
When the image was taken, YR4 was reportedly around 37 million miles from Earth.
To capture such a distant object the, team “took 12 200-second long exposures in the Red band (a specific range of wavelengths that correspond to visible red light or slightly beyond into the near-infrared spectrum) and tracked the motion of the asteroid,” Bolin explained.
He said the observations were difficult for several reasons, including the fact that the asteroid was faint, necessitating the use of large telescopes to observe it.
Another hurdle was the fact that the moon was 70% illuminated at the time, which created a backlighting effect that made the already grainy space gravel even harder to make out.
Thirdly, the asteroid — which was first snapped by NASA in December 2024 — was rocketing along at 0.26 arcseconds per minute, requiring careful tracking with the Gemini so they didn’t lose it among the stars.
It’ll be increasingly crucial to keep tabs on YR4. The rock currently boasts around a two percent chance of striking Earth in 2032, putting it at the top of NASA’s watch list when it comes to deep space dangers.
A strike by YR4 could release an energy blast equivalent to 8 megatons of TNT, capable of obliterating an area the size of Washington, as seen in chilling animations taking off online. The asteroid also has a 0.3% chance of hitting the moon as well.
Despite the potential for devastation, Bolin claimed that he finds “YR4 to be extremely exciting” due to “the scientific potential of studying such a small asteroid in high detail.”
He added that this could be the last “chance we have to observe the asteroid from Gemini” before it reapproaches in 2028.
Gemini won’t be the only telescope on the case.
NASA recently enlisted the aid of the James Webb telescope — the planet’s most powerful — to analyze 2024 YR4 and determine the level of damage it would cause if it did strike the planet
The instrument, which will start gathering intel in early March, would help astronomers glean a more accurate measurement of the rock’s size by using its infrared instruments to study the heat emitted by it.
