2017 RR15

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 2017 RR15

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a football field
  • Will pass within 22,814,840 km of Earth in 2026
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2017 RR15 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2017 RR15 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2017 RR15 orbits the sun every 591 days (1.62 years), coming as close as 0.79 AU and reaching as far as 1.97 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2017 RR15 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 RR15'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 RR15 has 12 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
March 21, 2026 22,814,840 11.860
March 31, 2047 8,506,771 15.810
Oct. 18, 2051 25,404,273 17.747
Oct. 25, 2072 26,212,640 11.962
March 28, 2081 6,096,261 14.563
Oct. 24, 2106 18,088,935 13.888
March 24, 2115 18,906,489 12.353
April 3, 2136 14,043,042 16.897
Oct. 20, 2140 21,423,001 16.619
Oct. 27, 2161 29,261,795 11.571
March 30, 2170 5,312,593 14.939
Oct. 26, 2195 23,187,206 12.598

Images and Observations

2017 RR15's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Dec. 7, 2012. It was last officially observed on Dec. 19, 2017. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 242 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 RR15:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.378 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.4282
  • Inclination: 18.53°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 13.45°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 97.8°
  • Mean Anomaly: 193.2°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.249 km
  • Magnitude: 20.7

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 591 days (1.62 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 25.37 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.97 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.79 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2017 RR15 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 RR15 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.