16834 (1997 WU22)

Mid-sized Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 16834 (1997 WU22)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to Mount Everest (1.87 km diameter)
  • Will pass within 28,596,667 km of Earth in 2121
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

16834 (1997 WU22) is a mid-sized asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 1997 WU22 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.

1997 WU22 orbits the sun every 650 days (1.78 years), coming as close as 0.82 AU and reaching as far as 2.12 AU from the sun. 1997 WU22 is about 1.9 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to Mount Everest.

The rotation of 1997 WU22 has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 9.35 hours.

1997 WU22's spectral type None (Tholen) / S (SMASSII) indicates that it is likely to contain and .

Close Approaches

1997 WU22's orbit is 0.15 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.

1997 WU22 has 5 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
June 3, 2121 28,596,667 13.426
June 9, 2137 26,929,737 13.400
June 12, 2153 26,031,490 13.380
June 12, 2169 26,133,237 13.390
June 7, 2185 27,576,092 13.428

Images and Observations

1997 WU22's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Oct. 8, 1988. It was last officially observed on April 2, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 3,333 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 1997 WU22:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.468 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.4422
  • Inclination: 15.99°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 260.77°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 334.32°
  • Mean Anomaly: 25.93°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 1.87000 km
  • Magnitude: 15.8
  • Albedo: 0.22
  • Spectral type (SMASS): S

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 650 days (1.78 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 24.57 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 2.12 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.82 AU
  • Rotation Period: 9.35 hours
  • Approx. Composition: and .

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 16834 (1997 WU22) 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 1997 WU22 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.