2016 GQ134

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 2016 GQ134

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a football field
  • Will pass within 21,449,035 km of Earth in 2047
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2016 GQ134 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2016 GQ134 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2016 GQ134 orbits the sun every 667 days (1.83 years), coming as close as 0.79 AU and reaching as far as 2.20 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2016 GQ134 is probably between 0.133 to 0.298 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a football field.

Close Approaches

2016 GQ134's orbit is 0.04 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 GQ134 has 11 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Nov. 3, 2047 21,449,035 18.119
May 21, 2049 29,612,050 17.189
Oct. 17, 2058 12,555,022 12.596
May 26, 2091 25,192,558 15.206
Oct. 21, 2100 8,710,193 13.303
Nov. 5, 2131 22,931,554 18.362
May 23, 2133 29,852,486 17.131
Oct. 10, 2142 20,416,662 11.624
June 2, 2164 26,352,233 12.031
Oct. 29, 2173 9,240,719 15.570
Sept. 27, 2184 28,559,960 11.380

Images and Observations

2016 GQ134's orbit is determined by observations dating back to April 1, 2016. It was last officially observed on Nov. 7, 2016. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 46 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 GQ134:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.494 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.4723
  • Inclination: 12.25°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 22.66°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 301.97°
  • Mean Anomaly: 307.32°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.172 km
  • Magnitude: 21.5

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 667 days (1.83 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 24.37 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 2.20 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.79 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2016 GQ134 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 GQ134 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.