2015 DC200

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 2015 DC200

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a football field
  • Will pass within 22,480,266 km of Earth in 2024
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2015 DC200 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2015 DC200 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2015 DC200 orbits the sun every 864 days (2.37 years), coming as close as 0.24 AU and reaching as far as 3.31 AU from the sun. Its orbit is highly elliptical. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2015 DC200 is probably between 0.211 to 0.472 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a football field.

Close Approaches

2015 DC200's orbit is 0.03 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.

2015 DC200 has 11 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Dec. 17, 2024 22,480,266 36.335
March 20, 2034 6,389,161 32.581
Dec. 19, 2050 26,865,900 37.444
March 17, 2060 12,211,161 34.191
Dec. 10, 2076 8,273,453 30.647
March 21, 2093 5,209,641 31.792
Dec. 7, 2109 23,195,674 27.592
March 15, 2126 24,845,392 37.122
Dec. 15, 2149 6,664,198 32.738
March 27, 2166 16,387,396 28.923
Dec. 16, 2182 9,604,047 33.466

Images and Observations

2015 DC200's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Feb. 24, 2015. It was last officially observed on Dec. 25, 2017. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 116 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 2015 DC200:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.776 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.8657
  • Inclination: 3.05°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 224.02°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 85.88°
  • Mean Anomaly: 183.2°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.273 km
  • Magnitude: 20.5

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 864 days (2.37 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 22.36 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 3.31 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.24 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2015 DC200 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 2015 DC200 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.