2009 VT

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 2009 VT

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a basketball court
  • Will pass within 22,973,740 km of Earth in 2026
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2009 VT is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2009 VT 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 VT orbits the sun every 585 days (1.60 years), coming as close as 0.82 AU and reaching as far as 1.92 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2009 VT is probably between 0.062 to 0.276 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a basketball court.

Close Approaches

2009 VT's orbit is 0.01 AU from Earth's orbit at its closest point. This means that its orbit is relatively close to Earth's orbit.

2009 VT has 17 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
March 23, 2026 22,973,740 8.294
April 17, 2034 15,287,452 7.852
May 1, 2042 4,880,391 9.448
May 1, 2050 4,674,174 9.497
April 17, 2058 15,059,892 7.863
March 23, 2066 23,087,497 8.290
March 2, 2074 25,974,220 8.829
Feb. 12, 2082 25,374,259 8.655
Jan. 21, 2090 21,311,182 7.832
Dec. 30, 2097 12,994,173 8.165
Dec. 22, 2105 7,213,212 10.177
Dec. 15, 2113 14,794,830 12.855
May 16, 2141 19,790,890 14.199
May 10, 2149 7,359,183 11.727
May 10, 2157 7,301,287 11.720
May 16, 2165 19,814,032 14.204
Dec. 16, 2193 16,502,567 13.264

Images and Observations

2009 VT's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Nov. 8, 2009. It was last officially observed on May 18, 2018. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 75 observations used to determine its orbit.

Accessibility and Exploration

2009 VT can be reached with a journey of 354 days. This trajectory would require a delta-v of 11.937 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 3 potential trajectories and launch windows to this asteroid.

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

Similar Objects

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

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.37 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.3995
  • Inclination: 3.4°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 214.65°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 300.28°
  • Mean Anomaly: 165.47°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.169 km
  • Magnitude: 22.25

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 585 days (1.60 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 25.48 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.92 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.82 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2009 VT 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 2009 VT 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.