2015 WP2

Key Facts

• Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
• Comparable in size to a school bus or smaller
• Will pass within 7,080,167 km of Earth in 2022
• Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
• Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
• See orbit simulation

Overview

2015 WP2 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2015 WP2 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 WP2 orbits the sun every 628 days (1.72 years), coming as close as 0.78 AU and reaching as far as 2.09 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2015 WP2 is probably between 0.003 to 0.006 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a school bus or smaller.

Close Approaches

2015 WP2's orbit is 0.00 AU from Earth's orbit at its closest point. This means that its orbit is very close to Earth's orbit.

2015 WP2 has 4 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

NASA Sentry has assessed impact risk for 30 very close approach scenarios. Here are the top scenarios ordered by probability of impact:

Images and Observations

2015 WP2's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Nov. 21, 2015. It was last officially observed on Nov. 23, 2015. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 40 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 WP2:

• 1943 Anteros (1973 EC)
• 4450 Pan (1987 SY)
• 16816 (1997 UF9)

References

• JPL Small Body Database
• Mission Design
• Sky Finder Chart

Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of 2015 WP2 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.