2012 XE133

Very small Aten-class Asteroid

Near-Earth
Space Reference » Aten-class Asteroids » 2012 XE133

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a school bus or smaller
  • Will pass within 4,648,411 km of Earth in 2020
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2012 XE133 is a very small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2012 XE133 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.

2012 XE133 orbits the sun every 225 days (0.62 years), coming as close as 0.41 AU and reaching as far as 1.04 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2012 XE133 is probably between 0.058 to 0.130 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a school bus or smaller.

Close Approaches

2012 XE133's orbit is 0.00 AU from Earth's orbit at its closest point. This means that its orbit is relatively close to Earth's orbit.

2012 XE133 has 34 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Dec. 26, 2020 4,648,411 9.138
Dec. 30, 2028 1,475,591 9.653
Dec. 21, 2036 7,463,057 8.821
Dec. 10, 2044 10,541,635 8.665
Nov. 30, 2052 11,253,253 8.882
Jan. 2, 2058 29,188,580 16.311
Nov. 24, 2060 11,539,789 9.373
Jan. 3, 2066 24,051,263 15.128
Nov. 21, 2068 12,240,415 9.922
Jan. 3, 2074 20,636,622 14.339
Nov. 20, 2076 13,103,859 10.377
Jan. 4, 2082 18,699,804 13.892
Nov. 19, 2084 13,648,027 10.621
Jan. 4, 2090 18,211,205 13.783
Nov. 19, 2092 13,618,675 10.607
Jan. 4, 2098 19,266,522 14.019
Nov. 21, 2100 13,029,538 10.345
Jan. 4, 2106 21,676,274 14.567
Nov. 23, 2108 12,156,313 9.892
Jan. 4, 2114 25,361,576 15.415
Nov. 26, 2116 11,439,666 9.375
Dec. 1, 2124 11,060,426 8.943
Dec. 9, 2132 10,530,239 8.703
Dec. 19, 2140 8,571,342 8.686
Dec. 28, 2148 4,283,514 9.122
Jan. 1, 2157 266,958 9.924
Jan. 5, 2162 18,190,107 13.680
Nov. 18, 2169 18,191,317 11.758
Dec. 1, 2174 12,144,466 8.898
Dec. 23, 2179 7,674,290 8.758
Jan. 3, 2185 5,005,601 10.791
Jan. 4, 2190 26,230,412 15.512
Nov. 18, 2192 28,021,557 14.641
Nov. 21, 2197 14,145,956 10.216

Images and Observations

2012 XE133's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Dec. 12, 2012. It was last officially observed on Jan. 5, 2021. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 180 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 2012 XE133:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.7231 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.4326
  • Inclination: 6.73°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 281.02°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 337.08°
  • Mean Anomaly: 2.9°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.075 km
  • Magnitude: 23.3

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 225 days (0.62 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 34.96 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.04 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.41 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2012 XE133 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 2012 XE133 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.