2015 TT238

Very small Aten-class Asteroid

Near-Earth
Space Reference » Aten-class Asteroids » 2015 TT238

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a school bus or smaller
  • Will pass within 13,530,887 km of Earth in 2020
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2015 TT238 is a very small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2015 TT238 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.

2015 TT238 orbits the sun every 304 days (0.83 years), coming as close as 0.66 AU and reaching as far as 1.11 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2015 TT238 is probably between 0.032 to 0.071 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a school bus or smaller.

Close Approaches

2015 TT238'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 TT238 has 17 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Sept. 30, 2020 13,530,887 7.168
Oct. 1, 2025 13,734,019 7.165
Oct. 5, 2030 15,875,940 7.086
Oct. 9, 2035 18,196,659 7.050
Oct. 14, 2040 20,673,480 7.041
Oct. 25, 2045 24,145,696 7.022
Nov. 5, 2050 26,519,887 6.949
Nov. 18, 2055 28,025,707 6.707
Dec. 13, 2060 28,245,572 6.029
Dec. 30, 2065 27,558,037 7.485
Dec. 28, 2070 29,606,194 9.445
Sept. 23, 2144 26,001,067 13.108
Sept. 22, 2149 7,819,868 9.664
Sept. 26, 2154 7,422,759 7.634
Oct. 17, 2159 21,007,181 7.003
Nov. 13, 2164 27,610,104 6.804
Jan. 1, 2170 27,453,721 7.051

Images and Observations

2015 TT238's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Oct. 12, 2015. It was last officially observed on Oct. 12, 2020. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 36 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 TT238:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.8855 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.2503
  • Inclination: 10.8°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 4.47°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 216.06°
  • Mean Anomaly: 328.36°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.041 km
  • Magnitude: 24.6

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 304 days (0.83 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 31.69 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.11 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.66 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2015 TT238 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 TT238 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.