NASA considers nuking “city killer” asteroid before it collides with the Moon

NASA scientists are weighing a drastic plan to launch nuclear bombs at a “city killer” asteroid that could smash into the Moon in 2032.

The asteroid, dubbed 2024 YR4, is about 300 ft long and once carried a small chance of striking Earth directly, sparking alarm earlier in 2025 when it briefly topped NASA’s Sentry Impact Risk Table with a record 3.1% probability of impact.

Follow-up observations reduced the odds of an Earth collision to nearly zero, but the rock still has a small chance of hitting the Moon on December 22, 2032.

While a lunar strike might sound harmless, scientists warn it could create a debris cloud weighing more than 100 million kilograms. That material could drift toward Earth within days, pelting satellites with meteoroids for years.

ESA-Science Office

To prevent that scenario, researchers are considering three missions, including a reconnaissance flyby and a deflection attempt.

The last option, literally the “nuclear option,” involves detonating up to two 100-kiloton nuclear devices, each several times stronger than the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

NASA plots nuking asteroid

The plan calls for a “kinetic disruption mission” where the first bomb would shatter or divert the rock, and a second device would serve as backup. If unnecessary, it could be detonated safely in deep space.

NASA says building and launching such a mission could take five to seven years, with the next available window falling between late 2029 and late 2031.

Scientists argue the mission wouldn’t just protect satellites – it could also prove a blueprint for defending Earth against future asteroid threats.

The proposal comes at a time when NASA has been under the spotlight for bold space science claims. Earlier this month, the agency revealed potential evidence that alien life once existed on Mars.

Meanwhile, Harvard astrophysicist Avi Loeb has stirred headlines by suggesting the interstellar object 3I/ATLAS could be an alien spaceship capable of launching probes at Earth.

Another astrophysicist added to the theories, suggesting that 3I/ATLAS might even be capable of creating planets.

NASA dismissed Loeb’s concerns, stating that the object is just a comet.

For now, though, the “city killer” asteroid is the immediate focus. And if the plan moves forward, it could mark the first time humanity considers nuking space to stop a cosmic threat.