138258 (2000 GD2)

Small Aten-class Asteroid

Near-Earth
Space Reference » Aten-class Asteroids » 138258 (2000 GD2)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the Golden Gate Bridge
  • Will pass within 18,876,631 km of Earth in 2031
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

138258 (2000 GD2) is a small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2000 GD2 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.

2000 GD2 orbits the sun every 241 days (0.66 years), coming as close as 0.40 AU and reaching as far as 1.12 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2000 GD2 is probably between 0.425 to 0.951 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.

2000 GD2's spectral type None (Tholen) / Sq (SMASSII) indicates that it is likely to contain and .

Close Approaches

2000 GD2's orbit is 0.07 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.

2000 GD2 has 25 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
March 14, 2031 18,876,631 19.187
March 15, 2033 10,809,942 17.568
March 18, 2035 15,694,126 16.743
March 22, 2037 25,460,037 16.556
March 14, 2062 21,947,367 19.731
March 14, 2064 11,608,500 17.892
March 17, 2066 13,725,818 16.869
March 21, 2068 23,134,857 16.543
March 14, 2093 25,026,749 20.249
March 15, 2095 13,184,397 18.244
March 17, 2097 12,031,537 17.055
March 21, 2099 20,809,985 16.585
March 16, 2124 28,027,917 20.801
March 16, 2126 15,156,090 18.604
March 17, 2128 11,011,490 17.222
March 21, 2130 18,884,916 16.615
March 25, 2132 28,880,964 16.593
March 16, 2157 17,058,749 18.954
March 17, 2159 10,570,894 17.424
March 20, 2161 17,100,420 16.683
March 25, 2163 27,099,609 16.563
March 15, 2188 19,227,584 19.309
March 17, 2190 10,648,378 17.637
March 19, 2192 15,434,895 16.767
March 24, 2194 25,364,233 16.560

Images and Observations

2000 GD2's orbit is determined by observations dating back to March 29, 1998. It was last officially observed on May 2, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 244 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 2000 GD2:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.7578 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.4768
  • Inclination: 32.14°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 358.12°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 16.98°
  • Mean Anomaly: 342.42°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.549 km
  • Magnitude: 18.98
  • Spectral type (SMASS): Sq

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 241 days (0.66 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 34.21 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.12 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.40 AU
  • Approx. Composition: and .

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 138258 (2000 GD2) 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 2000 GD2 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.