2006 UA

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 2006 UA

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a football field
  • Will pass within 19,512,236 km of Earth in 2023
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2006 UA is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2006 UA 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 UA orbits the sun every 691 days (1.89 years), coming as close as 0.79 AU and reaching as far as 2.27 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2006 UA is probably between 0.252 to 0.562 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

2006 UA'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 UA has 12 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Oct. 8, 2023 19,512,236 18.258
April 21, 2061 23,524,977 19.005
April 26, 2078 14,285,248 16.776
Sept. 19, 2093 29,442,570 10.763
April 28, 2095 11,919,347 15.594
Sept. 22, 2110 26,526,632 11.254
April 30, 2112 12,030,954 15.114
Sept. 22, 2127 26,962,463 11.170
April 30, 2129 12,124,065 15.204
April 29, 2146 12,807,362 15.987
April 25, 2163 20,565,885 18.266
Oct. 12, 2193 26,512,762 19.835

Images and Observations

2006 UA's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Oct. 16, 2006. It was last officially observed on March 19, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 223 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 UA:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.529 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.486
  • Inclination: 14.33°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 23.16°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 270.84°
  • Mean Anomaly: 13.89°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.325 km
  • Magnitude: 20.12

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 691 days (1.89 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 24.07 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 2.27 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.79 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2006 UA 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 UA 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.