How does the Torino Scale Work?
The Torino Scale utilizes numbers that range from 0 to 10, where 0 indicates an object has a zero or negligibly small chance of collision with the Earth. (Zero is also used to categorize any object that is too small to penetrate the Earth’s atmosphere intact, in the event that a collision does occur.) A 10 indicates that a collision is certain, and the impacting object is so large that it is capable of precipitating a global climatic disaster. The Torino Scale is color coded from white to yellow to orange to red. Each color code has an overall meaning: White – “No Hazard” meaning they are virtually certain to miss Earth or are so small that any impact would almost certainly dissipate in the atmosphere. White corresponds to category 0. Green – “Normal” refers to objects that have predictable close approaches with some very small, but not seriously concerning, chance of a collision. Nonetheless, prudence dictates their orbits should be tracked closely so that the collision chance becomes
