1996 PW

Key Facts

• Categorized as a Trans-Neptunian Object
• Comparable in size to the San Francisco Bay
• Not a Near Earth Object
• Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
• See orbit simulation

Overview

1996 PW is a mid-sized asteroid whose orbit extends beyond the orbit of Neptune. NASA JPL has not classified 1996 PW as potentially hazardous because its orbit does not bring it close to Earth.

1996 PW orbits the sun every 1,690,000 days (4,626.97 years), coming as close as 2.52 AU and reaching as far as 552.08 AU from the sun. Its orbit is highly elliptical. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 1996 PW is probably between 4.411 to 9.864 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, very roughly comparable in size to the San Francisco Bay.

The rotation of 1996 PW has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 35.44 hours.

1996 PW's spectral type None (Tholen) / Ld (SMASSII) indicates that it is likely to contain and .

No Close Approaches

1996 PW's orbit is 1.52 AU from Earth's orbit at its closest point. This means that there is an extremely wide berth between this asteroid and Earth at all times.

Orbital simulations conducted by NASA JPL's CNEOS do not show any close approaches to Earth.

Images and Observations

1996 PW's orbit is determined by observations dating back to July 22, 1996. It was last officially observed on Dec. 28, 1997. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 267 observations used to determine its orbit.

Accessibility and Exploration

This asteroid is not considered a viable target for human exploration by the NHATS study.

References

• JPL Small Body Database
• Mission Design
• Sky Finder Chart

Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of 1996 PW 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 1996 PW 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.