2016 TY55

Key Facts

• Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
• Comparable in size to a school bus or smaller
• Will pass within 22,667,490 km of Earth in 2019
• Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
• Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
• See orbit simulation

Overview

2016 TY55 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2016 TY55 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 TY55 orbits the sun every 382 days (1.05 years), coming as close as 0.87 AU and reaching as far as 1.19 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2016 TY55 is probably between 0.007 to 0.032 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a school bus or smaller.

Close Approaches

2016 TY55's orbit is 0.00 AU from Earth's orbit at its closest point. This means that its orbit is relatively close to Earth's orbit.

2016 TY55 has 9 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

NASA Sentry has assessed impact risk for 31 very close approach scenarios. Here are the top scenarios ordered by probability of impact:

Images and Observations

2016 TY55's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Oct. 10, 2016. It was last officially observed on Oct. 19, 2016. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 45 observations used to determine its orbit.

Accessibility and Exploration

2016 TY55 can be reached with a journey of 370 days. This trajectory would require a delta-v of 5.089 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 454,023 potential trajectories and launch windows to this asteroid.

See more at the NHATS Mission Trajectories table for 2016 TY55.

Similar Objects

These objects have orbits that share similar characteristics to the orbit of 2016 TY55:

• 4581 Asclepius (1989 FC)
• 98943 (2001 CC21)
• 138971 (2001 CB21)

References

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

Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of 2016 TY55 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.