An asteroid the size of the Empire State Building has a slight chance of smashing into Earth, but Neil deGrasse Tyson says the fact scientists were able to recover samples of the space rock might be even bigger news.

Neil joined us Thursday on “TMZ Live” … talking us through NASA’s remarkable mission to send a probe — dubbed the OSIRIS-REx — to collect rocks and dust off the ancient asteroid known as Bennu.

What’s amazing is that probe launched from Earth 7 years ago, aiming to hit a moving target … and now it’s expected to land this weekend in Utah!!!

Neil wants to make sure everyone’s aware of just how spectacular this is — he’s throwing a little jab at the science deniers out there, too.

BTW, a new report revealed Bennu could hit Earth around 2182, but the odds of it happening are currently about 1 in 3,000 … so we’re probably good. 🤷🏽‍♂️

Of course, marveling at humankind’s scientific accomplishments puts new perspective on what a potential alien species might be able to do.

Remember, governments and scientists around the world are taking UFO reports more seriously these days — and Neil says there’s plenty of reason to believe we’re not alone in the universe.

But, check out his rationale for why they’re probably not here among us.

And, in case ya forgot, NdT was singin’ the same tune last month when we talked to him. Bottom line … he hasn’t seen enough tangible evidence to change his mind about aliens.