2016 FG60

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 2016 FG60

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a football field
  • Will pass within 21,860,706 km of Earth in 2081
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2016 FG60 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2016 FG60 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2016 FG60 orbits the sun every 609 days (1.67 years), coming as close as 0.55 AU and reaching as far as 2.26 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2016 FG60 is probably between 0.138 to 0.309 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a football field.

Close Approaches

2016 FG60'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 FG60 has 12 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Jan. 30, 2081 21,860,706 15.507
Feb. 5, 2086 10,692,467 18.229
Feb. 10, 2091 11,889,960 20.860
Feb. 15, 2096 23,865,922 23.715
July 16, 2102 18,495,737 22.909
July 20, 2107 5,205,931 20.351
July 22, 2112 3,172,436 18.786
July 28, 2117 18,892,554 15.788
Feb. 1, 2183 22,011,512 15.547
Feb. 6, 2188 12,838,820 17.709
Feb. 8, 2193 9,673,919 19.490
Feb. 10, 2198 10,676,218 20.222

Images and Observations

2016 FG60's orbit is determined by observations dating back to March 3, 2016. It was last officially observed on June 17, 2020. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 24 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 FG60:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.406 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.6088
  • Inclination: 9.32°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 297.41°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 102.29°
  • Mean Anomaly: 255.0°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.178 km
  • Magnitude: 21.42

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 609 days (1.67 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 25.12 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 2.26 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.55 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2016 FG60 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 FG60 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.