The odds of a newly discovered asteroid '2024 YR4' crashing into Earth are rising according to scientists. Here's what to know and where it can hit.

Researchers say there’s a 1.3 percent chance that the space rock 2024 YR4 could strike our planet — but not until December 2032.

YR is considered to be larger than the Chelyabinsk asteroid that struck Russia in 2013. Its shock wave was strong enough to injure 1,500 people.

According to research from NASA’s Center of NEO Studies the asteroid is projected to come within 66,000 miles of earth on December 22, 2032. That’s a very long way away by earth standards but in the vast scale of space that’s well within the margin of error.

Researchers discovered Asteroid 2024 YR4 last Christmas — and the odds on it hitting Earth have increased since

Rock wider than football pitch could have devastating impact if it hits our planet – which, according to Nasa scientists, is possible

Look at it this way — there's around a 98 per cent chance an asteroid up to the size of a football field won't hit the Earth in eight years. Still, there's up to a two per cent chance it will, according to NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA).

YR4 was first discovered in December last year by a telescope in Chile. The near-Earth asteroid is as big as a football field, measuring 40 to 100 metres across.

YR4 has just above a 1% chance of crashing into Earth in 2032, which is why astronomers and space agencies are paying attention to it.

A newly discovered asteroid named 2024 YR4 now has a 2.2% chance of affecting Earth in 2032 after recent observations.

The chances that a space rock could hit Earth in less than a decade just went up slightly, according to NASA scientists. The asteroid 2024 YR4, which is expected to pass Earth in 2032, was recently calculated to have a 1-out-of-43 chance of striking our planet.