2008 JL24 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2008 JL24 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.
2008 JL24 orbits the sun every 386 days (1.06 years), coming as close as 0.93 AU and reaching as far as 1.15 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2008 JL24 is probably between 0.002 to 0.009 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a school bus or smaller.
The rotation of 2008 JL24 has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 0.05 hours.
2008 JL24's orbit is 0.00 AU from Earth's orbit at its closest point. This means that its orbit is very close to Earth's orbit.
2008 JL24 has 6 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:
| Date | Distance from Earth (km) | Velocity (km/s) |
|---|---|---|
| Oct. 16, 2025 | 16,032,381 | 2.491 |
| March 5, 2026 | 9,123,173 | 2.403 |
| June 21, 2026 | 13,918,461 | 1.990 |
| Dec. 9, 2043 | 2,848,110 | 3.322 |
| Aug. 28, 2044 | 19,104,329 | 3.059 |
| May 17, 2045 | 2,484,137 | 3.277 |
NASA Sentry has assessed impact risk for 6 very close approach scenarios. Here are the top scenarios ordered by probability of impact:
| Date | Probability of Impact (%) | Impact Energy (Mt) |
|---|---|---|
| Jan. 22, 2091 | 0.00003 | 0.001472 |
| Nov. 21, 2104 | 0.00002 | 0.001476 |
| Jan. 22, 2109 | 0.00001 | 0.001475 |
| Nov. 20, 2105 | 0.00001 | 0.001474 |
| Jan. 5, 2111 | 0.00001 | 0.001474 |
| Jan. 12, 2105 | 0.00000 | 0.001473 |
2008 JL24's orbit is determined by observations dating back to May 11, 2008. It was last officially observed on May 16, 2008. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 88 observations used to determine its orbit.
2008 JL24 can be reached with a journey of 354 days. This trajectory would require a delta-v of 4.093 km/s. To put this into perspective, the delta-v to launch a rocket to Low-Earth Orbit is 9.7 km/s. There are 1,988,749 potential trajectories and launch windows to this asteroid.
See more at the NHATS Mission Trajectories table for 2008 JL24.
The position of 2008 JL24 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.