An asteroid could hit Earth, but scientists are continuing to gather data to understand its trajectory and potential impact to Earth.

Astronomers have upped the odds of an asteroid called 2024 YR4 striking Earth, albeit in 2032, but warn that it will most likely soon be downgraded, and miss Earth.

A recently released animation shows a new look at a large asteroid that has a small, but significant, chance of impacting planet Earth in seven years.

The Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System — a global network of telescopes funded by NASA to find Earth-threatening objects — spotted the asteroid 2024 YR4 in December

Experts are tracking asteroid 2024 YR4, which has a 1.2% chance of impacting Earth in 2032. Observations continue to refine its path.

The rocky object called Bennu is classified as a near-Earth asteroid, currently making its closest approach to Earth every six years at about 186,000 miles (299,000 km) away. It might come even closer in the future, with scientists estimating a one-in-2,700 chance of a collision with Earth in September 2182.

The chance of a major asteroid striking Earth in 2032 heightened to 2.3 percent, but scientists say the likelihood of impact remains very low. Newsweek reached out to NASA for comment via email. NASA is tracking the asteroid,

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).

Space agencies have systems in place to spot, track, and forecast the future orbits of potentially hazardous asteroids.

NASA revealed last week that it was tracking an asteroid the size of Big Ben that is hurtling towards Earth, with a one-in-83 chance of striking our home planet in 2032. Now, experts have bumped the odds up to a one-in-43 chance of impact.