137062 (1998 WM)

Mid-sized Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 137062 (1998 WM)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the U.S. Pentagon (1.27 km diameter)
  • Will pass within 25,709,083 km of Earth in 2037
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

137062 (1998 WM) is a mid-sized asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 1998 WM as a "Near Earth Asteroid" due to its orbit's proximity to Earth, but it is not considered potentially hazardous because computer simulations have not indicated any imminent likelihood of future collision.

1998 WM orbits the sun every 495 days (1.36 years), coming as close as 0.84 AU and reaching as far as 1.61 AU from the sun. 1998 WM is about 1.3 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the U.S. Pentagon.

The rotation of 1998 WM has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 2.58 hours.

1998 WM's spectral type None (Tholen) / Sq (SMASSII) indicates that it is likely to contain and .

Close Approaches

1998 WM's orbit is 0.17 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.

1998 WM has 8 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
May 1, 2037 25,709,083 15.079
May 19, 2060 27,579,563 15.203
April 19, 2079 29,903,618 15.185
May 11, 2102 25,408,253 15.095
April 21, 2121 29,467,146 15.172
May 19, 2144 27,153,045 15.182
April 27, 2163 27,094,575 15.112
May 14, 2186 25,872,035 15.115

Images and Observations

1998 WM's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Oct. 16, 1987. It was last officially observed on Jan. 9, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 4,677 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 1998 WM:

References

Search

   or view a random object

Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.225 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.3155
  • Inclination: 22.52°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 45.62°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 172.56°
  • Mean Anomaly: 339.95°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 1.26500 km
  • Magnitude: 16.77
  • Albedo: 0.411
  • Spectral type (SMASS): Sq

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 495 days (1.36 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 26.92 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.61 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.84 AU
  • Rotation Period: 2.58 hours
  • Approx. Composition: and .

Map Comparison

Click to load map

Orbit Simulation

⧉

Sky Map

The position of 137062 (1998 WM) 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 1998 WM 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.