PHEW! 'Doomsday' asteroid swarm isn't hiding that many dangerous space rocks

Astronomers are constantly keeping a tab on asteroids that might pose a danger to Earth. The Taurid swarm has been seen as a field of debris in space which might be hiding a few of these space rocks.

However, according to a new study, there might not be as many potentially hazardous asteroids out there as initially thought.

The findings were announced at the American Astronomical Society's Division for Planetary Sciences annual meeting on October 7, 2024. Researchers, led by the University of Maryland, used the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) telescope to study a stream of space debris drifting near Earth called the Taurid swarm.

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The Taurids rain down on Earth as a meteor shower in October and November. They are believed to be remnants of a large comet called Encke which broke up thousands of years ago and was possibly up to 100 kilometres(62 miles) wide.

The region has long been thought to be hiding dangerous asteroids, but there has never been any confirmation or denial about them. Researchers believed that the Taurid swarm might be harbouring a number of large, kilometre-class space rocks left behind by the comet.

However, the latest study puts all concerns to rest.

Quanzhi Ye, who supervised the project and is an assistant research scientist in UMD's Department of Astronomy, said that the swarm of asteroids was studied when it recently passed closer to Earth to check for any dangerous asteroids.

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"Our findings suggest that the risk of being hit by a large asteroid in the Taurid swarm is much lower than we believed, which is great news for planetary defence."

Large asteroids have caused devastation in the past

Scientists say it is important to learn about potentially large objects that might be on collision course with Earth, as they can cause regional damage.

One such incident happened when the Chelyabinsk asteroid hit Russia and injured more than 1,600 people in 2013. Asteroids can also cause extinction-level events, like the one that killed the dinosaurs over 66 million years ago.

"Fortunately, we found that it's likely there may only be a handful of asteroids—perhaps only nine to 14 of them—that fit this large size class in the swarm," Ye explained.

Scientists say the Taurid swarm is hiding information about planetary evolution, especially due to its connection to the comet Encke.