10115 (1992 SK)

Small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 10115 (1992 SK)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the Golden Gate Bridge (0.94 km diameter)
  • Will pass within 29,808,210 km of Earth in 2031
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

10115 (1992 SK) is a small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 1992 SK as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

1992 SK orbits the sun every 510 days (1.40 years), coming as close as 0.84 AU and reaching as far as 1.65 AU from the sun. 1992 SK is about 0.9 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than ~97% of asteroids but small compared to large asteroids, comparable in size to the Golden Gate Bridge.

The rotation of 1992 SK has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 7.32 hours.

Close Approaches

1992 SK's orbit is 0.05 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.

1992 SK has 12 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Aug. 25, 2031 29,808,210 10.748
April 8, 2052 20,880,017 10.268
March 23, 2059 6,786,273 12.060
March 13, 2066 20,190,025 15.053
April 9, 2112 20,544,173 10.269
March 25, 2119 6,653,684 12.016
March 15, 2126 18,802,691 14.836
Aug. 26, 2151 29,182,428 11.032
April 17, 2172 26,419,342 10.065
March 30, 2179 10,760,095 11.126
March 20, 2186 9,402,412 13.164
March 11, 2193 28,569,277 16.548

Images and Observations

1992 SK's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Oct. 12, 1953. It was last officially observed on April 13, 2021. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 1,619 observations used to determine its orbit.

Accessibility and Exploration

This asteroid is not considered a viable target for human exploration by the NHATS study.

Similar Objects

These objects have orbits that share similar characteristics to the orbit of 1992 SK:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.249 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.3248
  • Inclination: 15.32°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 8.9°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 233.67°
  • Mean Anomaly: 161.93°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 0.93800 km
  • Magnitude: 17.16
  • Albedo: 0.318
  • Spectral type (SMASS): S:

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 510 days (1.40 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 26.64 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.65 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.84 AU
  • Rotation Period: 7.32 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 10115 (1992 SK) 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.

Size Rendering

The above comparison is an artistic rendering that uses available data on the diameter of 1992 SK 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.