2006 BA9

Very small Aten-class Asteroid

Near-Earth
Space Reference » Aten-class Asteroids » 2006 BA9

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a school bus or smaller
  • Will pass within 13,681,621 km of Earth in 2025
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2006 BA9 is a very small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2006 BA9 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.

2006 BA9 orbits the sun every 318 days (0.87 years), coming as close as 0.58 AU and reaching as far as 1.25 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2006 BA9 is probably between 0.077 to 0.171 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a school bus or smaller.

Close Approaches

2006 BA9's orbit is 0.07 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.

2006 BA9 has 26 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Dec. 29, 2025 13,681,621 12.983
Jan. 2, 2033 17,617,352 9.250
April 12, 2034 25,353,282 8.616
April 14, 2041 24,119,948 13.225
Dec. 31, 2052 23,970,617 15.638
Dec. 30, 2059 11,920,669 10.416
April 3, 2061 29,761,741 8.163
Jan. 17, 2067 28,937,120 8.959
April 15, 2068 22,039,669 11.945
Jan. 1, 2080 26,931,771 16.327
Dec. 30, 2086 11,096,378 10.781
Jan. 15, 2094 27,495,619 8.906
April 16, 2095 21,671,803 11.415
Dec. 30, 2113 10,734,276 11.686
Jan. 9, 2121 23,057,040 8.855
April 17, 2122 22,277,611 9.936
April 14, 2129 29,510,181 15.141
Dec. 31, 2140 17,855,111 14.187
Jan. 1, 2148 13,739,884 9.881
April 8, 2149 28,384,152 8.182
Jan. 19, 2155 29,005,168 8.937
April 17, 2156 22,076,274 11.889
Dec. 31, 2174 13,222,084 12.932
Jan. 3, 2182 16,329,659 9.407
April 13, 2183 26,608,022 8.362
April 17, 2190 22,448,493 12.177

Images and Observations

2006 BA9's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Jan. 24, 2006. It was last officially observed on Feb. 27, 2020. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 59 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 2006 BA9:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.9124 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.3661
  • Inclination: 8.32°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 305.83°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 25.65°
  • Mean Anomaly: 214.01°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.099 km
  • Magnitude: 22.7

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 318 days (0.87 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 31.21 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.25 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.58 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2006 BA9 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 2006 BA9 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.