2003 GQ22

Very small Aten-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Aten-class Asteroids » 2003 GQ22

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a football field
  • Will pass within 7,500,644 km of Earth in 2025
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2003 GQ22 is a very small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2003 GQ22 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2003 GQ22 orbits the sun every 297 days (0.81 years), coming as close as 0.71 AU and reaching as far as 1.03 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2003 GQ22 is probably between 0.134 to 0.301 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a football field.

Close Approaches

2003 GQ22's orbit is 0.02 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.

2003 GQ22 has 18 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
April 7, 2025 7,500,644 8.898
April 15, 2034 23,679,487 11.278
April 6, 2047 10,416,561 8.913
April 14, 2056 17,362,918 10.439
April 4, 2069 14,169,797 9.008
April 13, 2078 8,543,325 9.516
April 2, 2091 18,688,278 9.228
April 14, 2100 11,766,931 9.809
April 7, 2113 10,998,015 8.926
April 16, 2122 26,443,521 11.645
March 28, 2126 29,764,735 10.210
April 12, 2135 4,294,305 9.166
April 7, 2148 9,458,136 8.902
April 16, 2157 28,729,903 11.992
March 30, 2161 26,816,850 9.899
April 15, 2170 14,749,427 10.130
April 13, 2183 4,934,936 9.209
April 11, 2196 3,547,355 9.030

Images and Observations

2003 GQ22's orbit is determined by observations dating back to April 7, 2003. It was last officially observed on May 13, 2021. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 83 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 2003 GQ22:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.8719 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.182
  • Inclination: 17.02°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 199.5°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 168.78°
  • Mean Anomaly: 217.02°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.174 km
  • Magnitude: 21.48

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 297 days (0.81 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 31.94 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.03 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.71 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2003 GQ22 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 2003 GQ22 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.