Key Facts
- Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
- Comparable in size to the Golden Gate Bridge (0.90 km diameter)
- Will pass within 9,054,900 km of Earth in 2020
- Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
- Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
- See orbit simulation
Overview
Ryugu is a small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified Ryugu as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.
Ryugu orbits the sun every 475 days (1.30 years), coming as close as 0.96 AU and reaching as far as 1.42 AU from the sun. Ryugu 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 Ryugu has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 7.63 hours.
Ryugu's spectral type None (Tholen) / Cb (SMASSII) indicates that it is likely to contain water, iron, nickel, cobalt, nitrogen, and ammonia.
Close Approaches
Ryugu's orbit is 0.00 AU from Earth's orbit at its closest point. This means that its orbit is very close to Earth's orbit.
Ryugu has 11 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:
| Date | Distance from Earth (km) | Velocity (km/s) |
|---|---|---|
| Dec. 29, 2020 | 9,054,900 | 4.110 |
| Dec. 21, 2033 | 7,097,701 | 4.078 |
| Feb. 16, 2047 | 21,360,367 | 6.525 |
| Nov. 16, 2063 | 21,138,675 | 8.213 |
| Dec. 6, 2076 | 1,562,045 | 4.466 |
| Dec. 29, 2101 | 8,772,512 | 4.109 |
| Nov. 12, 2105 | 29,186,821 | 9.787 |
| Dec. 30, 2130 | 8,985,452 | 4.097 |
| Nov. 15, 2134 | 23,564,069 | 8.734 |
| Dec. 22, 2163 | 7,001,421 | 4.075 |
| Nov. 17, 2167 | 19,334,378 | 7.934 |
Images and Observations
Ryugu's orbit is determined by observations dating back to April 14, 1986. It was last officially observed on June 21, 2021. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 4,916 observations used to determine its orbit.
Accessibility and Exploration
Ryugu can be reached with a journey of 370 days. This trajectory would require a delta-v of 8.248 km/s. To put this into perspective, the delta-v to launch a rocket to Low-Earth Orbit is 9.7 km/s. There are 77,628 potential trajectories and launch windows to this asteroid.
See more at the NHATS Mission Trajectories table for Ryugu.
Similar Objects
These objects have orbits that share similar characteristics to the orbit of Ryugu:References
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or view a random objectOrbital Elements
- Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
- Semi-major axis: 1.191 AU
- Eccentricity: 0.191
- Inclination: 5.87°
- Longitude of Ascending Node: 251.3°
- Argument of Periapsis: 211.6°
- Mean Anomaly: 24.02°
Physical Characteristics
- Diameter: 0.89600 km
- Magnitude: 19.55
- Albedo: 0.045
- Spectral type (SMASS): Cb
Derived Characteristics
- Orbit Period: 475 days (1.30 years)
- Avg. Orbit Speed: 27.28 km/s
- Aphelion Distance: 1.42 AU
- Perihelion Distance: 0.96 AU
- Rotation Period: 7.63 hours
- Approx. Composition: water, iron, nickel, cobalt, nitrogen, and ammonia.
Map Comparison
Orbit Simulation
Sky Map
The position of Ryugu 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 Ryugu 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.
