Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a basketball court
  • Will pass within 18,251,119 km of Earth in 2025
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2001 BX15 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2001 BX15 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 BX15 orbits the sun every 975 days (2.67 years), coming as close as 0.78 AU and reaching as far as 3.06 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2001 BX15 is probably between 0.127 to 0.284 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a basketball court.

Close Approaches

2001 BX15's orbit is 0.08 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 BX15 has 15 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Feb. 3, 2025 18,251,119 13.602
Feb. 8, 2033 23,504,407 12.433
Feb. 11, 2041 26,762,079 11.914
Feb. 8, 2049 24,044,731 12.363
Feb. 8, 2057 23,692,832 12.437
Feb. 8, 2065 24,212,409 12.389
Feb. 3, 2073 18,100,528 13.782
Jan. 30, 2081 13,804,822 15.188
Jan. 29, 2089 13,371,336 15.635
Jan. 24, 2097 15,743,979 17.880
Jan. 19, 2105 29,905,330 21.349
June 26, 2174 17,990,173 18.933
June 22, 2182 12,004,657 17.335
June 24, 2190 14,272,611 18.115
June 26, 2198 17,131,083 18.786

Images and Observations

2001 BX15's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Jan. 18, 2001. It was last officially observed on Jan. 28, 2017. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 104 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 BX15:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.924 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.5924
  • Inclination: 12.15°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 107.59°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 87.64°
  • Mean Anomaly: 155.85°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.164 km
  • Magnitude: 21.6

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 975 days (2.67 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 21.47 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 3.06 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.78 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of 2001 BX15 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 BX15 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.