Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a school bus or smaller
  • Will pass within 23,200,374 km of Earth in 2019
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2009 EH1 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2009 EH1 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.

2009 EH1 orbits the sun every 461 days (1.26 years), coming as close as 0.76 AU and reaching as far as 1.58 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2009 EH1 is probably between 0.005 to 0.022 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a school bus or smaller.

Close Approaches

2009 EH1'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.

2009 EH1 has 3 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Sept. 9, 2019 23,200,374 15.291
Sept. 4, 2033 9,659,693 12.623
March 3, 2051 15,545,326 13.831

NASA Sentry has assessed impact risk for 1 very close approach scenarios. Here are the top scenarios ordered by probability of impact:

Date Probability of Impact (%) Impact Energy (Mt)
March 17, 2068 0.00000 0.02882

Images and Observations

2009 EH1's orbit is determined by observations dating back to March 3, 2009. It was last officially observed on March 5, 2009. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 21 observations used to determine its orbit.

Accessibility and Exploration

2009 EH1 can be reached with a journey of 394 days. This trajectory would require a delta-v of 10.365 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 483 potential trajectories and launch windows to this asteroid.

See more at the NHATS Mission Trajectories table for 2009 EH1.

Similar Objects

These objects have orbits that share similar characteristics to the orbit of 2009 EH1:

References

Search

   or view a random object

Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2454894.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.168 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.3495
  • Inclination: 1.16°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 158.62°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 93.55°
  • Mean Anomaly: 310.15°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.013 km
  • Magnitude: 27.76

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 461 days (1.26 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 27.56 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.58 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.76 AU

Map Comparison

Click to load map

Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of 2009 EH1 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.