137120 (1999 BJ8)

Small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 137120 (1999 BJ8)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the Golden Gate Bridge
  • Will pass within 27,362,295 km of Earth in 2033
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

137120 (1999 BJ8) is a small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 1999 BJ8 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

1999 BJ8 orbits the sun every 956 days (2.62 years), coming as close as 0.85 AU and reaching as far as 2.95 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 1999 BJ8 is probably between 0.582 to 1.300 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than ~97% of asteroids but small compared to large asteroids, very roughly comparable in size to the Golden Gate Bridge.

Close Approaches

1999 BJ8'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.

1999 BJ8 has 9 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
April 19, 2033 27,362,295 11.029
Feb. 24, 2054 5,380,632 12.520
Feb. 15, 2075 10,383,176 15.087
June 10, 2088 23,245,545 12.851
May 8, 2109 27,665,131 10.670
April 3, 2130 24,996,185 11.061
March 5, 2151 11,218,634 11.491
March 3, 2172 10,224,597 11.636
March 23, 2193 21,404,102 10.859

Images and Observations

1999 BJ8's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Jan. 14, 1999. It was last officially observed on Nov. 1, 2021. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 469 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 1999 BJ8:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.9 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.5501
  • Inclination: 8.99°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 339.59°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 221.86°
  • Mean Anomaly: 122.44°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.751 km
  • Magnitude: 18.3

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 956 days (2.62 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 21.62 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 2.95 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.85 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 137120 (1999 BJ8) 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 1999 BJ8 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.