2005 NE21

Very small Aten-class Asteroid

Near-Earth
Space Reference » Aten-class Asteroids » 2005 NE21

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a football field
  • Will pass within 19,361,139 km of Earth in 2019
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2005 NE21 is a very small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2005 NE21 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.

2005 NE21 orbits the sun every 256 days (0.70 years), coming as close as 0.40 AU and reaching as far as 1.18 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2005 NE21 is probably between 0.146 to 0.327 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a football field.

Close Approaches

2005 NE21's orbit is 0.06 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.

2005 NE21 has 47 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
July 7, 2019 19,361,139 10.871
Aug. 28, 2024 22,294,649 13.990
July 1, 2026 14,442,843 11.248
Aug. 28, 2031 20,639,403 12.560
June 27, 2033 10,250,530 11.976
Aug. 25, 2038 20,975,488 11.706
June 25, 2040 8,371,280 12.807
Aug. 21, 2045 22,283,454 11.125
June 25, 2047 10,061,783 13.965
Aug. 14, 2052 24,266,152 10.817
June 25, 2054 16,313,921 15.615
Aug. 7, 2059 25,853,117 10.762
June 26, 2061 24,878,013 17.597
July 30, 2066 26,274,691 10.761
July 21, 2073 25,145,699 10.755
July 12, 2080 22,213,901 10.782
Aug. 29, 2085 25,289,346 15.191
July 5, 2087 17,684,442 10.961
Aug. 29, 2092 21,654,502 13.485
June 30, 2094 12,917,634 11.429
Aug. 28, 2099 20,782,889 12.287
June 28, 2101 9,366,464 12.178
Aug. 26, 2106 21,392,099 11.540
June 26, 2108 8,193,934 13.069
Aug. 21, 2113 22,968,175 10.999
June 26, 2115 11,227,482 14.388
Aug. 14, 2120 24,856,912 10.783
June 26, 2122 18,051,222 16.056
Aug. 7, 2127 26,165,251 10.762
June 27, 2129 26,709,733 18.019
July 29, 2134 26,254,943 10.759
July 20, 2141 24,644,694 10.748
July 11, 2148 21,097,838 10.799
Aug. 30, 2153 24,274,845 14.718
July 5, 2155 16,514,882 11.041
Aug. 30, 2160 21,505,903 13.217
June 30, 2162 12,038,995 11.555
Aug. 29, 2167 21,003,387 12.112
June 28, 2169 8,720,052 12.354
Aug. 25, 2174 21,849,228 11.397
June 26, 2176 8,217,882 13.311
Aug. 20, 2181 23,463,039 10.934
June 26, 2183 12,038,563 14.652
Aug. 13, 2188 25,230,346 10.765
June 27, 2190 19,173,155 16.340
Aug. 6, 2195 26,370,120 10.758
June 28, 2197 28,322,998 18.392

Images and Observations

2005 NE21's orbit is determined by observations dating back to July 7, 2005. It was last officially observed on July 10, 2019. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 136 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 2005 NE21:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.7892 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.4964
  • Inclination: 10.64°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 289.71°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 194.74°
  • Mean Anomaly: 126.66°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.189 km
  • Magnitude: 21.3

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 256 days (0.70 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 33.54 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.18 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.40 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2005 NE21 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 2005 NE21 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.