4953 (1990 MU) is a mid-sized asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 1990 MU as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.
1990 MU orbits the sun every 754 days (2.06 years), coming as close as 0.56 AU and reaching as far as 2.69 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 1990 MU is probably between 2.720 to 6.082 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, very roughly comparable in size to the island of Manhattan.
The rotation of 1990 MU has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 14.22 hours.
1990 MU's orbit is 0.02 AU from Earth's orbit at its closest point. This means that there is a wide berth between this asteroid and Earth at all times.
1990 MU has 11 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:
Date | Distance from Earth (km) | Velocity (km/s) |
---|---|---|
June 6, 2027 | 4,612,208 | 23.817 |
Nov. 24, 2049 | 18,364,138 | 25.435 |
June 5, 2058 | 3,454,335 | 23.117 |
Nov. 19, 2080 | 28,397,686 | 27.924 |
May 30, 2089 | 18,712,127 | 20.273 |
Dec. 6, 2113 | 23,091,383 | 20.886 |
June 13, 2122 | 22,781,204 | 27.333 |
Dec. 1, 2144 | 15,731,952 | 22.605 |
June 10, 2153 | 13,600,421 | 25.697 |
Nov. 30, 2175 | 14,197,384 | 23.177 |
June 10, 2184 | 11,629,989 | 25.361 |
1990 MU's orbit is determined by observations dating back to July 21, 1974. It was last officially observed on Aug. 5, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 2,365 observations used to determine its orbit.
The position of 4953 (1990 MU) is indicated by a ◯ pink circle. Note that the object may not be in your current field of view. Use the controls below to adjust position, location, and time.
The above comparison is an artistic rendering that uses available data on the diameter of 1990 MU to create an approximate landscape rendering with Mount Everest in the background. This approximation is built for full-resolution desktop browsers. Shape, color, and texture of asteroid are imagined.