2003 UX5

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 2003 UX5

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a football field
  • Will pass within 19,149,463 km of Earth in 2022
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2003 UX5 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2003 UX5 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2003 UX5 orbits the sun every 632 days (1.73 years), coming as close as 0.95 AU and reaching as far as 1.93 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2003 UX5 is probably between 0.234 to 0.522 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 90% of asteroids but tiny compared to large asteroids, very roughly comparable in size to a football field.

Close Approaches

2003 UX5's orbit is 0.05 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 UX5 has 8 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Nov. 22, 2022 19,149,463 12.124
Nov. 8, 2048 24,369,420 16.060
Nov. 19, 2067 10,169,219 12.801
Nov. 8, 2093 27,926,996 16.570
Nov. 20, 2112 12,166,329 12.598
Nov. 12, 2138 17,500,519 15.120
Nov. 24, 2157 23,765,602 11.886
Nov. 16, 2183 9,628,618 13.959

Images and Observations

2003 UX5's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Oct. 18, 2003. It was last officially observed on May 14, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 309 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 UX5:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.441 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.3408
  • Inclination: 21.45°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 50.5°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 50.38°
  • Mean Anomaly: 144.43°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.302 km
  • Magnitude: 20.28

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 632 days (1.73 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 24.80 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.93 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.95 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2003 UX5 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 UX5 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.