2008 TA4

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 2008 TA4

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a school bus or smaller
  • Will pass within 11,973,608 km of Earth in 2025
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2008 TA4 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2008 TA4 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 TA4 orbits the sun every 414 days (1.13 years), coming as close as 0.95 AU and reaching as far as 1.22 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2008 TA4 is probably between 0.017 to 0.074 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a school bus or smaller.

Close Approaches

2008 TA4's orbit is 0.01 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 TA4 has 8 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Oct. 13, 2025 11,973,608 8.145
March 25, 2026 19,202,790 8.574
March 18, 2043 28,844,795 10.036
Oct. 6, 2050 16,598,180 10.047
April 10, 2051 26,287,853 8.149
Oct. 11, 2067 2,004,592 8.583
March 31, 2068 19,898,284 8.226
March 20, 2102 27,858,535 9.939

Images and Observations

2008 TA4's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Oct. 6, 2008. It was last officially observed on Oct. 12, 2008. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 29 observations used to determine its orbit.

Accessibility and Exploration

2008 TA4 can be reached with a journey of 362 days. This trajectory would require a delta-v of 11.609 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 14 potential trajectories and launch windows to this asteroid.

See more at the NHATS Mission Trajectories table for 2008 TA4.

Similar Objects

These objects have orbits that share similar characteristics to the orbit of 2008 TA4:

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.087 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.1229
  • Inclination: 15.48°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 16.54°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 61.82°
  • Mean Anomaly: 7.38°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.046 km
  • Magnitude: 25.1

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 414 days (1.13 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 28.56 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.22 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.95 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2008 TA4 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 TA4 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.