2015 WG9

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 2015 WG9

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the U.S. Capitol building (0.48 km diameter)
  • Will pass within 28,197,661 km of Earth in 2021
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2015 WG9 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2015 WG9 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2015 WG9 orbits the sun every 1,060 days (2.90 years), coming as close as 0.63 AU and reaching as far as 3.44 AU from the sun. 2015 WG9 is about 0.5 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 90% of asteroids but tiny compared to large asteroids, comparable in size to the U.S. Capitol building.

Close Approaches

2015 WG9'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 WG9 has 12 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
May 31, 2021 28,197,661 22.835
Nov. 14, 2044 13,998,304 25.152
May 24, 2050 8,702,403 25.696
Nov. 11, 2073 23,749,421 23.643
May 23, 2079 5,670,425 26.577
Nov. 13, 2102 20,972,907 24.032
May 23, 2108 7,197,971 26.165
Nov. 14, 2131 18,912,546 24.323
May 23, 2137 7,436,713 26.179
Nov. 10, 2160 28,737,190 22.974
May 21, 2166 8,060,824 27.462
May 14, 2195 28,425,854 31.096

Images and Observations

2015 WG9's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Nov. 20, 2015. It was last officially observed on June 12, 2021. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 332 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 WG9:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 2.033 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.6914
  • Inclination: 34.37°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 239.37°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 90.04°
  • Mean Anomaly: 266.3°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 0.48000 km
  • Magnitude: 20.39
  • Albedo: 0.047

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 1,060 days (2.90 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 20.87 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 3.44 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.63 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2015 WG9 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 WG9 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.