163243 (2002 FB3)

Mid-sized Aten-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Aten-class Asteroids » 163243 (2002 FB3)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to Mount Everest (1.68 km diameter)
  • Will pass within 28,856,897 km of Earth in 2058
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

163243 (2002 FB3) is a mid-sized asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2002 FB3 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2002 FB3 orbits the sun every 243 days (0.67 years), coming as close as 0.30 AU and reaching as far as 1.22 AU from the sun. 2002 FB3 is about 1.7 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to Mount Everest.

The rotation of 2002 FB3 has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 6.23 hours.

Close Approaches

2002 FB3's orbit is 0.00 AU from Earth's orbit at its closest point. This means that its orbit is relatively close to Earth's orbit.

2002 FB3 has 31 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
April 7, 2058 28,856,897 14.992
April 8, 2060 25,699,383 15.191
April 10, 2062 22,543,282 15.461
April 11, 2064 19,272,871 15.787
April 12, 2066 15,901,030 16.164
April 12, 2068 12,636,208 16.593
April 13, 2070 9,674,336 17.038
April 13, 2072 6,917,260 17.470
April 13, 2074 4,605,218 17.840
April 13, 2076 3,116,952 18.089
April 13, 2078 2,850,175 18.147
April 13, 2080 3,939,447 17.964
April 13, 2082 5,894,094 17.623
April 13, 2084 8,487,588 17.205
April 13, 2086 11,633,976 16.753
April 12, 2088 14,924,951 16.297
April 12, 2090 18,208,723 15.878
April 10, 2092 21,538,436 15.544
April 9, 2094 24,882,703 15.261
April 7, 2096 28,039,036 15.025
April 11, 2179 25,996,003 23.729
April 12, 2181 21,048,097 22.711
April 13, 2183 16,357,753 21.752
April 13, 2185 11,999,863 20.866
April 14, 2187 7,986,331 20.091
April 14, 2189 4,740,203 19.492
April 15, 2191 2,647,452 19.103
April 14, 2193 2,237,589 19.018
April 15, 2195 3,825,685 19.308
April 14, 2197 6,773,897 19.869
April 14, 2199 10,410,121 20.566

Images and Observations

2002 FB3's orbit is determined by observations dating back to March 18, 2002. It was last officially observed on July 1, 2022. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 1,140 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 FB3:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.7616 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.6017
  • Inclination: 20.28°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 203.57°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 148.33°
  • Mean Anomaly: 236.19°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 1.68200 km
  • Magnitude: 16.52
  • Albedo: 0.172

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 243 days (0.67 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 34.10 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.22 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.30 AU
  • Rotation Period: 6.23 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 163243 (2002 FB3) 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 FB3 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.