154330 (2002 VX94)

Small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 154330 (2002 VX94)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the Golden Gate Bridge
  • Will pass within 19,384,049 km of Earth in 2021
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

154330 (2002 VX94) is a small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2002 VX94 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2002 VX94 orbits the sun every 655 days (1.79 years), coming as close as 0.87 AU and reaching as far as 2.08 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2002 VX94 is probably between 0.612 to 1.368 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.

The rotation of 2002 VX94 has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 8.93 hours.

Close Approaches

2002 VX94's orbit is 0.03 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.

2002 VX94 has 13 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
May 5, 2021 19,384,049 8.545
March 20, 2030 21,461,918 8.617
Feb. 7, 2039 10,336,647 8.769
Jan. 20, 2048 10,362,218 11.769
May 10, 2082 18,942,935 8.977
March 23, 2091 21,771,965 8.559
Feb. 9, 2100 10,845,054 8.693
Jan. 20, 2109 10,748,812 11.903
May 12, 2143 18,926,168 8.901
March 24, 2152 21,907,818 8.575
Feb. 10, 2161 11,013,439 8.675
Jan. 22, 2170 9,872,977 11.733
May 30, 2195 29,496,113 14.077

Images and Observations

2002 VX94's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Nov. 27, 1986. It was last officially observed on Aug. 6, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 524 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 2002 VX94:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.477 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.4089
  • Inclination: 7.16°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 320.09°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 215.2°
  • Mean Anomaly: 133.71°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.790 km
  • Magnitude: 18.19

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 655 days (1.79 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 24.53 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 2.08 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.87 AU
  • Rotation Period: 8.93 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 154330 (2002 VX94) 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 2002 VX94 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.