2016 CE

Key Facts

• Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
• Comparable in size to a school bus or smaller
• Will pass within 17,290,669 km of Earth in 2022
• Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
• Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
• See orbit simulation

Overview

2016 CE is a very small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2016 CE 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.

2016 CE orbits the sun every 286 days (0.78 years), coming as close as 0.61 AU and reaching as far as 1.09 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2016 CE is probably between 0.004 to 0.016 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a school bus or smaller.

Close Approaches

2016 CE'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.

2016 CE has 11 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Images and Observations

2016 CE's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Feb. 3, 2016. It was last officially observed on Feb. 5, 2016. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 57 observations used to determine its orbit.

Accessibility and Exploration

2016 CE can be reached with a journey of 370 days. This trajectory would require a delta-v of 10.644 km/s. To put this into perspective, the delta-v to launch a rocket to Low-Earth Orbit is 9.7 km/s. There are 4,360 potential trajectories and launch windows to this asteroid.

See more at the NHATS Mission Trajectories table for 2016 CE.

Similar Objects

These objects have orbits that share similar characteristics to the orbit of 2016 CE:

• 2340 Hathor (1976 UA)
• 66400 (1999 LT7)
• 86667 (2000 FO10)

References

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

Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of 2016 CE 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.