2017 VU13

Very small Aten-class Asteroid

Near-Earth
Space Reference » Aten-class Asteroids » 2017 VU13

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a football field
  • Will pass within 24,081,541 km of Earth in 2020
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2017 VU13 is a very small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2017 VU13 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.

2017 VU13 orbits the sun every 285 days (0.78 years), coming as close as 0.45 AU and reaching as far as 1.24 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2017 VU13 is probably between 0.184 to 0.411 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a football field.

Close Approaches

2017 VU13's orbit is 0.13 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 VU13 has 14 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Sept. 7, 2020 24,081,541 15.071
Sept. 13, 2027 19,155,308 17.642
Sept. 17, 2034 25,915,882 20.507
Sept. 7, 2059 27,694,027 14.321
Sept. 11, 2066 19,536,482 16.833
Sept. 16, 2073 22,986,025 19.601
Sept. 10, 2105 21,379,871 15.940
Sept. 15, 2112 20,733,987 18.691
Sept. 9, 2144 24,495,260 15.055
Sept. 14, 2151 19,524,307 17.671
Sept. 19, 2158 26,681,317 20.635
Sept. 8, 2183 28,312,909 14.243
Sept. 12, 2190 20,033,407 16.725
Sept. 17, 2197 23,134,290 19.566

Images and Observations

2017 VU13's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Nov. 13, 2017. It was last officially observed on Oct. 24, 2020. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 43 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 VU13:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.8472 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.4688
  • Inclination: 21.21°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 153.29°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 68.85°
  • Mean Anomaly: 28.93°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.237 km
  • Magnitude: 20.8

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 285 days (0.78 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 32.34 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.24 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.45 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2017 VU13 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 VU13 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.