2017 BK92

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 2017 BK92

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a football field
  • Will pass within 19,875,544 km of Earth in 2031
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2017 BK92 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2017 BK92 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2017 BK92 orbits the sun every 577 days (1.58 years), coming as close as 0.53 AU and reaching as far as 2.18 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2017 BK92 is probably between 0.193 to 0.431 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a football field.

Close Approaches

2017 BK92's orbit is 0.03 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.

2017 BK92 has 15 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Sept. 15, 2031 19,875,544 17.326
March 1, 2036 18,638,313 17.189
Feb. 26, 2055 7,867,955 19.373
Feb. 28, 2074 12,944,009 18.275
Sept. 14, 2088 22,422,102 16.833
March 3, 2093 22,646,087 16.393
Sept. 17, 2107 19,218,154 17.524
March 4, 2112 22,270,523 16.459
Feb. 22, 2131 10,818,959 22.549
Sept. 26, 2137 13,523,852 22.209
Feb. 22, 2161 11,543,750 22.709
Sept. 28, 2167 16,135,699 22.880
Sept. 13, 2186 27,072,950 15.968
Feb. 26, 2191 4,136,068 20.183
Oct. 1, 2197 25,188,280 24.919

Images and Observations

2017 BK92's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Jan. 30, 2017. It was last officially observed on Nov. 11, 2020. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 86 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 2017 BK92:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.357 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.6064
  • Inclination: 12.74°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 342.96°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 273.8°
  • Mean Anomaly: 9.01°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.249 km
  • Magnitude: 20.7

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 577 days (1.58 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 25.59 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 2.18 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.53 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2017 BK92 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 2017 BK92 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.