Collision is only a matter of time: Scientists warn of a future threat from space

According to him, asteroids have a limited “lifetime” of about 10 million years, during which they may fall onto a planet, end up in the Sun, or be ejected into the outer regions of the Solar System, as reported by RIA Novosti.

For this reason, he stated that continuous observation of space is “necessary.”

Zheleznov emphasized that it is not possible to precisely predict when a potentially dangerous object might appear, but that a collision between Earth and an asteroid is inevitable at some point in the future—whether in 10 or 10,000 years.

He stressed that there are methods to prevent possible disasters, primarily by deflecting asteroids from a collision course.

As an example, he cited the 2022 experiment when a spacecraft impacted the asteroid Dimorphos and changed its orbit.

The scientist concluded that it is important to realistically assess risks, along with continuous monitoring of objects near Earth.