2018 BM3

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 2018 BM3

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a basketball court
  • Will pass within 21,814,946 km of Earth in 2025
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2018 BM3 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2018 BM3 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2018 BM3 orbits the sun every 431 days (1.18 years), coming as close as 0.55 AU and reaching as far as 1.69 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2018 BM3 is probably between 0.110 to 0.245 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a basketball court.

Close Approaches

2018 BM3'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.

2018 BM3 has 14 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Jan. 10, 2025 21,814,946 22.842
Jan. 7, 2038 7,858,769 20.266
Jan. 5, 2051 581,905 18.863
June 7, 2055 28,828,155 19.364
Jan. 10, 2071 17,218,279 21.989
Jan. 1, 2084 24,874,004 14.846
Jan. 5, 2104 8,411,021 17.446
Jan. 5, 2124 7,168,935 17.638
Jan. 3, 2144 20,636,636 15.481
Jan. 15, 2151 29,495,100 24.307
Jan. 12, 2171 19,138,387 22.363
June 14, 2175 29,470,047 17.660
Jan. 8, 2191 4,050,867 19.601
June 9, 2195 28,147,294 19.145

Images and Observations

2018 BM3's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Dec. 20, 2017. It was last officially observed on May 27, 2022. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 46 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 2018 BM3:

References

Search

   or view a random object

Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.117 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.5107
  • Inclination: 19.62°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 105.46°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 250.81°
  • Mean Anomaly: 359.91°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.142 km
  • Magnitude: 21.92

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 431 days (1.18 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 28.19 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.69 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.55 AU

Map Comparison

Click to load map

Orbit Simulation

⧉

Sky Map

The position of 2018 BM3 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 2018 BM3 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.