Science | asteroid Scientists Spar Over Asteroid Apocalypse in 2036 1-in-250,000 chance that Apophis will hit Earth By Nick McMaster Posted Feb 7, 2011 6:46 PM CST Copied An image provided by the German Aerospace Center DLR on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2008 shows a two photos combo of the asteroid Steins, on Friday, Sept. 5, 2008. (AP Photo/ESA) If that whole end-of-the-world thing doesn't work out next year, maybe the jig is up in 2036: Scientists are now saying that's the year an asteroid previously thought harmless (after having been deemed catastrophic before that) might just plow into the Earth. A few Russian scientists are warning that Apophis, which is expected to come within five Earth radii of our planet, will hit a gravitational "keyhole" that will pull it onto a collision course, the Christian Science Monitor reports. Apophis—which the Russian scientists estimate will hit our planet on April 13, 2036—has a diameter of two football fields, so a collision could be catastrophic. But NASA says the chance of an impact is slight. "Technically, they’re correct, there is a chance in 2036 that Apophis will hit Earth," said Donald Yeomans, head of NASA’s Near-Earth Object Program Office. But that chance is just one in 250,000, he says. Read These Next The Wall Street Journal is naming more names tied to Epstein. Trump isn't talking about a Ghislaine Maxwell pardon. The White House and South Park are having a tiff. South Park episode on Trump may be a real 'mess' for him. Report an error