China establishes 'planetary defense' team.

China's defense ministry is recruiting space researchers after discovering an asteroid that could strike Earth within seven years.

According to the South China Morning Post , this move comes after the European Space Agency (ESA) updated its assessment on February 7th that asteroid 2024 YR4 has a 2.2% chance of colliding with Earth in 2032. This information not only attracted the attention of the scientific community but also prompted many countries, including China, to consider countermeasures.

Asteroid discovered that could collide with Earth in 2032.

The asteroid 2024 YR4, estimated to be between 40 and 90 meters wide and located approximately 43 million kilometers from Earth, was discovered by the Astronomical Institute of the University of Hawaii (USA) in late December. If the asteroid enters the atmosphere, it could cause a powerful airborne explosion similar to the Tunguska meteorite impact in 1908. The resulting shock wave could then destroy forests over an area of ​​more than 2,000 ^square kilometers. If 2024 YR4 becomes denser and richer in iron, it could leave a large impact crater on the Earth's surface, according to the Zamin newspaper of Uzbekistan.

An illustration of an asteroid that could strike Earth in 2032.

This discovery triggered global asteroid response mechanisms as the likelihood of 2024 YR4 colliding with Earth exceeded internationally monitored thresholds. In response to this potential threat, China is expanding its planetary defense research and developing collision avoidance measures.

Accordingly, a special project center at China's National Defense Science, Technology and Industry Administration recently posted a recruitment notice for a "planetary defense headquarters".

According to an announcement posted last month on the WeChat account of the Chinese Space Science and Technology Journal – responsible for research and development in aerospace engineering and Earth observation – it is recruiting recent graduates to conduct research on asteroid monitoring and the development of early warning methods.

The South China Morning Post reports that there are various methods that could be used to try to prevent an asteroid from colliding with Earth. In the world's first successful planetary defense test in 2022, the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) had a spacecraft collide head-on with an asteroid to alter its orbit.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/trung-quoc-thanh-lap-doi-phong-thu-hanh-tinh-185250211102251634.htm