2016 EF28

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 2016 EF28

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a basketball court
  • Will pass within 11,832,257 km of Earth in 2028
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2016 EF28 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2016 EF28 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2016 EF28 orbits the sun every 934 days (2.56 years), coming as close as 0.64 AU and reaching as far as 3.10 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2016 EF28 is probably between 0.121 to 0.272 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a basketball court.

The rotation of 2016 EF28 has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 9.52 hours.

Close Approaches

2016 EF28's orbit is 0.02 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 EF28 has 10 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Sept. 9, 2028 11,832,257 20.618
March 7, 2039 17,766,761 22.122
Sept. 16, 2051 9,146,437 17.343
Feb. 10, 2080 28,442,454 13.541
March 6, 2103 11,915,285 20.910
Sept. 20, 2115 11,971,239 16.675
Feb. 18, 2144 22,797,449 14.413
Sept. 8, 2156 20,588,034 22.419
March 9, 2167 18,287,997 22.167
Sept. 28, 2179 23,143,247 14.367

Images and Observations

2016 EF28's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Feb. 27, 2016. It was last officially observed on May 10, 2021. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 238 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 EF28:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.87 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.657
  • Inclination: 5.16°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 143.91°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 292.1°
  • Mean Anomaly: 359.02°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.157 km
  • Magnitude: 21.7

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 934 days (2.56 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 21.78 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 3.10 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.64 AU
  • Rotation Period: 9.52 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2016 EF28 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 EF28 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.