How big is Bennu? NASA tracking space rock larger than the Empire State Building

NASA says an asteroid larger than the Empire State Building is heading toward Earth. But don't worry, it's not expected to arrive until the year 2182 and there's only a .05% chance it will hit our planet.

It's important to understand this hazard in general, as well as what we might be able to do when an asteroid ultimately is going to collide with the Earth -- because it's happened many times before throughout geologic history.

The good news is, scientists have been working on one of the solutions. It involves sending something into space to deter the asteroid.

RELATED: Asteroid that passes nearby could hit Earth in the future, NASA says

In October of 2022, NASA successfully used its mission called "Dart" to alter the trajectory of an asteroid with a spacecraft.

The asteroid, named "Bennu" has come close to Earth a few times since it was first discovered in 1999.

RELATED: NASA reveals sample from asteroid Bennu contains water, lots of carbon: the building blocks of life