2016 AZ8

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 2016 AZ8

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a football field (0.22 km diameter)
  • Will pass within 4,454,515 km of Earth in 2019
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2016 AZ8 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2016 AZ8 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2016 AZ8 orbits the sun every 555 days (1.52 years), coming as close as 0.85 AU and reaching as far as 1.79 AU from the sun. 2016 AZ8 is about 0.2 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, comparable in size to a football field.

The rotation of 2016 AZ8 has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 16.90 hours.

Close Approaches

2016 AZ8'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.

2016 AZ8 has 17 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Jan. 7, 2019 4,454,515 9.147
Sept. 3, 2053 14,055,806 9.122
Oct. 27, 2056 22,987,868 7.717
Dec. 23, 2059 12,789,039 7.498
Jan. 17, 2063 17,632,625 12.517
Sept. 8, 2097 14,710,239 8.051
Nov. 5, 2100 23,010,535 7.851
Dec. 29, 2103 10,461,696 7.712
Jan. 19, 2107 18,962,427 12.785
Aug. 30, 2141 17,262,778 10.926
Oct. 6, 2144 20,809,984 7.025
Nov. 29, 2147 20,419,409 7.753
Jan. 10, 2151 4,915,421 9.443
Aug. 30, 2185 17,853,092 11.113
Oct. 6, 2188 20,810,327 7.060
Dec. 2, 2191 19,761,411 7.716
Jan. 12, 2195 5,591,943 9.732

Images and Observations

2016 AZ8's orbit is determined by observations dating back to July 21, 2012. It was last officially observed on Feb. 23, 2022. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 371 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 2016 AZ8:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.321 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.3552
  • Inclination: 5.59°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 89.99°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 318.55°
  • Mean Anomaly: 58.54°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 0.21500 km
  • Magnitude: 21.08
  • Albedo: 0.138

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 555 days (1.52 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 25.89 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.79 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.85 AU
  • Rotation Period: 16.90 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2016 AZ8 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 2016 AZ8 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.