2017 DN109

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 2017 DN109

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a basketball court
  • Will pass within 17,458,095 km of Earth in 2027
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2017 DN109 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2017 DN109 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2017 DN109 orbits the sun every 478 days (1.31 years), coming as close as 0.21 AU and reaching as far as 2.18 AU from the sun. Its orbit is highly elliptical. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2017 DN109 is probably between 0.115 to 0.257 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a basketball court.

Close Approaches

2017 DN109'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.

2017 DN109 has 13 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
May 6, 2027 17,458,095 32.469
Feb. 11, 2034 25,609,452 25.313
May 5, 2044 19,628,670 32.928
Feb. 10, 2051 27,938,411 24.745
May 4, 2061 22,907,018 33.646
May 3, 2078 25,876,860 34.310
May 3, 2095 28,662,650 34.922
May 18, 2142 26,631,920 24.190
May 17, 2159 22,175,179 24.993
Feb. 22, 2166 27,226,933 33.012
May 16, 2176 17,729,789 25.800
Feb. 22, 2183 24,499,493 32.192
May 15, 2193 14,346,470 26.454

Images and Observations

2017 DN109's orbit is determined by observations dating back to May 2, 2010. It was last officially observed on April 25, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 70 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 DN109:

References

Search

   or view a random object

Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.196 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.8269
  • Inclination: 7.09°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 66.13°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 302.28°
  • Mean Anomaly: 46.15°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.148 km
  • Magnitude: 21.82

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 478 days (1.31 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 27.22 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 2.18 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.21 AU

Map Comparison

Click to load map

Orbit Simulation

⧉

Sky Map

The position of 2017 DN109 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 DN109 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.