2008 LW16

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 2008 LW16

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the U.S. Capitol building
  • Will pass within 25,974,348 km of Earth in 2019
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2008 LW16 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2008 LW16 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2008 LW16 orbits the sun every 402 days (1.10 years), coming as close as 0.96 AU and reaching as far as 1.18 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2008 LW16 is probably between 0.271 to 0.605 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 90% of asteroids but tiny compared to large asteroids, very roughly comparable in size to the U.S. Capitol building.

Close Approaches

2008 LW16's orbit is 0.03 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.

2008 LW16 has 20 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
July 3, 2019 25,974,348 14.733
Jan. 4, 2020 16,984,891 16.525
July 1, 2030 23,941,565 14.600
Jan. 6, 2031 24,964,568 16.996
June 30, 2041 23,609,113 14.529
June 28, 2052 25,904,870 14.559
Dec. 21, 2073 27,482,517 16.732
Dec. 24, 2084 17,668,536 16.268
Dec. 27, 2095 10,823,373 16.080
Dec. 29, 2106 8,547,913 16.045
Dec. 27, 2117 11,750,726 16.097
Dec. 25, 2128 19,287,431 16.324
Dec. 22, 2139 29,333,201 16.845
June 29, 2151 28,749,036 14.657
June 30, 2162 24,504,103 14.540
July 2, 2173 23,038,341 14.544
July 3, 2184 24,161,628 14.644
Jan. 6, 2185 21,693,862 16.783
July 4, 2195 26,629,824 14.791
Jan. 5, 2196 14,392,096 16.397

Images and Observations

2008 LW16's orbit is determined by observations dating back to June 15, 2008. It was last officially observed on June 9, 2020. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 155 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 2008 LW16:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.066 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.1035
  • Inclination: 29.69°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 97.97°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 347.93°
  • Mean Anomaly: 135.06°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.350 km
  • Magnitude: 19.96

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 402 days (1.10 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 28.85 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.18 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.96 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2008 LW16 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 2008 LW16 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.