2011 AA37

Very small Amor-class Asteroid

Near-Earth
Space Reference » Amor-class Asteroids » 2011 AA37

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Amor-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a school bus or smaller
  • Will pass within 14,247,531 km of Earth in 2026
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2011 AA37 is a very small asteroid whose orbit approaches the orbit of Earth but does not cross it. NASA JPL has classified 2011 AA37 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.

2011 AA37 orbits the sun every 419 days (1.15 years), coming as close as 1.08 AU and reaching as far as 1.11 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2011 AA37 is probably between 0.048 to 0.214 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a school bus or smaller.

The rotation of 2011 AA37 has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 10.00 hours.

Close Approaches

2011 AA37's orbit is 0.09 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.

2011 AA37 has 23 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Aug. 10, 2026 14,247,531 1.801
June 5, 2034 15,604,227 2.227
March 18, 2042 19,872,578 1.845
Jan. 5, 2050 15,662,282 2.496
Oct. 29, 2057 15,443,529 1.576
July 18, 2065 13,439,654 2.107
May 13, 2073 17,659,482 2.087
Feb. 20, 2081 19,108,196 2.112
Dec. 17, 2088 14,619,644 2.434
Sept. 20, 2096 15,705,548 0.915
June 30, 2104 13,785,341 2.246
April 20, 2112 19,282,220 1.865
Jan. 31, 2120 17,612,997 2.380
Nov. 29, 2127 14,484,637 2.212
Aug. 17, 2135 14,615,412 1.671
June 10, 2143 15,260,240 2.272
March 25, 2151 19,935,249 1.802
Jan. 11, 2159 15,908,611 2.481
Nov. 5, 2166 15,136,719 1.730
July 24, 2174 13,654,500 2.070
May 19, 2182 17,291,169 2.149
Feb. 27, 2190 19,393,415 2.032
Dec. 22, 2197 14,632,281 2.436

Images and Observations

2011 AA37's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Jan. 13, 2011. It was last officially observed on Jan. 10, 2019. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 137 observations used to determine its orbit.

Accessibility and Exploration

2011 AA37 can be reached with a journey of 386 days. This trajectory would require a delta-v of 5.851 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 507,295 potential trajectories and launch windows to this asteroid.

See more at the NHATS Mission Trajectories table for 2011 AA37.

Similar Objects

These objects have orbits that share similar characteristics to the orbit of 2011 AA37:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.096 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.0167
  • Inclination: 3.82°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 275.69°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 131.4°
  • Mean Anomaly: 80.41°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.131 km
  • Magnitude: 22.8

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 419 days (1.15 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 28.46 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.11 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 1.08 AU
  • Rotation Period: 10.00 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2011 AA37 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 2011 AA37 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.