2005 WS3

Very small Aten-class Asteroid

Near-Earth
Space Reference » Aten-class Asteroids » 2005 WS3

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a football field
  • Will pass within 27,334,895 km of Earth in 2021
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2005 WS3 is a very small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2005 WS3 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 WS3 orbits the sun every 201 days (0.55 years), coming as close as 0.29 AU and reaching as far as 1.06 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2005 WS3 is probably between 0.151 to 0.337 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a football field.

Close Approaches

2005 WS3'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 WS3 has 43 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Dec. 12, 2021 27,334,895 19.353
Nov. 18, 2022 20,583,324 16.363
Dec. 3, 2027 10,161,163 14.869
Dec. 12, 2032 22,559,238 18.238
Nov. 16, 2033 23,815,442 17.152
Nov. 30, 2038 11,115,333 14.813
Dec. 12, 2043 18,173,264 17.234
Nov. 15, 2044 27,661,804 18.127
Nov. 27, 2049 12,401,388 14.879
Dec. 11, 2054 14,541,867 16.405
Nov. 24, 2060 13,895,303 15.054
Dec. 9, 2065 11,947,853 15.784
Nov. 22, 2071 15,577,991 15.339
Dec. 7, 2076 10,444,811 15.351
Nov. 20, 2082 17,519,102 15.734
Dec. 6, 2087 9,885,379 15.061
Dec. 12, 2092 28,352,381 19.546
Nov. 18, 2093 19,848,686 16.258
Dec. 3, 2098 10,049,268 14.884
Dec. 14, 2103 23,901,425 18.502
Nov. 18, 2104 22,706,009 16.946
Dec. 2, 2109 10,750,251 14.805
Dec. 13, 2114 19,684,490 17.531
Nov. 18, 2115 26,165,068 17.812
Nov. 29, 2120 11,817,237 14.833
Dec. 12, 2125 15,961,212 16.682
Nov. 27, 2131 13,139,021 14.968
Dec. 11, 2136 13,029,246 16.000
Nov. 24, 2142 14,704,773 15.213
Dec. 10, 2147 11,081,355 15.495
Nov. 22, 2153 16,595,815 15.581
Dec. 8, 2158 10,119,736 15.139
Dec. 14, 2163 29,824,160 19.857
Nov. 20, 2164 18,943,688 16.102
Dec. 5, 2169 10,022,698 14.913
Dec. 14, 2174 24,982,638 18.717
Nov. 19, 2175 21,901,092 16.807
Dec. 2, 2180 10,602,024 14.806
Dec. 13, 2185 20,382,512 17.652
Nov. 18, 2186 25,541,478 17.710
Nov. 30, 2191 11,629,298 14.819
Dec. 12, 2196 16,355,046 16.730
Nov. 17, 2197 29,759,773 18.783

Images and Observations

2005 WS3's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Nov. 25, 2005. It was last officially observed on Nov. 11, 2021. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 167 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 WS3:

References

Search

   or view a random object

Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.6716 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.5755
  • Inclination: 23.07°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 69.38°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 176.1°
  • Mean Anomaly: 312.4°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.195 km
  • Magnitude: 21.23

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 201 days (0.55 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 36.35 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.06 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.29 AU

Map Comparison

Click to load map

Orbit Simulation

⧉

Sky Map

The position of 2005 WS3 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 WS3 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.