163023 (2001 XU1)

Very small Aten-class Asteroid

Near-Earth
Space Reference » Aten-class Asteroids » 163023 (2001 XU1)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the U.S. Capitol building
  • Will pass within 19,388,822 km of Earth in 2033
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

163023 (2001 XU1) is a very small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2001 XU1 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.

2001 XU1 orbits the sun every 260 days (0.71 years), coming as close as 0.36 AU and reaching as far as 1.23 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2001 XU1 is probably between 0.332 to 0.741 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 90% of asteroids but tiny compared to large asteroids, very roughly comparable in size to the U.S. Capitol building.

Close Approaches

2001 XU1's orbit is 0.06 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.

2001 XU1 has 20 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Nov. 28, 2033 19,388,822 22.251
Nov. 27, 2038 9,928,703 20.113
Nov. 27, 2043 10,126,687 18.439
Nov. 28, 2048 18,561,033 17.165
Dec. 1, 2053 27,921,644 16.412
Nov. 30, 2075 27,909,623 24.004
Nov. 28, 2080 16,223,744 21.603
Nov. 27, 2085 8,503,604 19.597
Nov. 27, 2090 12,113,448 18.038
Nov. 29, 2095 21,149,155 16.920
Dec. 1, 2122 24,864,267 23.417
Nov. 29, 2127 13,624,863 21.082
Nov. 28, 2132 8,110,469 19.191
Nov. 29, 2137 14,040,951 17.712
Dec. 1, 2142 23,450,747 16.705
Nov. 30, 2169 21,690,588 22.783
Nov. 29, 2174 11,162,420 20.565
Nov. 29, 2179 8,670,624 18.786
Nov. 29, 2184 16,377,268 17.412
Dec. 2, 2189 25,990,976 16.525

Images and Observations

2001 XU1's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Nov. 23, 2001. It was last officially observed on Jan. 6, 2022. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 376 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 2001 XU1:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.7973 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.5464
  • Inclination: 27.15°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 69.69°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 208.52°
  • Mean Anomaly: 322.15°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.428 km
  • Magnitude: 19.52

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 260 days (0.71 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 33.36 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.23 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.36 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 163023 (2001 XU1) 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 below comparison is an artistic rendering that uses available data on the diameter of 2001 XU1 to create an approximate landscape rendering with New York City in the background. This approximation is built for full-resolution desktop browsers. Shape, color, and texture of asteroid are imagined.