Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a school bus or smaller
  • Will pass within 5,093,446 km of Earth in 2019
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2018 FK5 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2018 FK5 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.

2018 FK5 orbits the sun every 418 days (1.14 years), coming as close as 0.77 AU and reaching as far as 1.42 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2018 FK5 is probably between 0.006 to 0.013 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a school bus or smaller.

Close Approaches

2018 FK5'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 FK5 has 3 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Oct. 1, 2019 5,093,446 10.476
April 1, 2026 7,890,053 10.030
Oct. 4, 2027 1,714,690 11.594

NASA Sentry has assessed impact risk for 2 very close approach scenarios. Here are the top scenarios ordered by probability of impact:

Date Probability of Impact (%) Impact Energy (Mt)
Oct. 3, 2110 0.00022 0.01747
Oct. 3, 2087 0.00015 0.01749

Images and Observations

2018 FK5's orbit is determined by observations dating back to March 28, 2018. It was last officially observed on March 29, 2018. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 33 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 FK5:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.094 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.2965
  • Inclination: 12.22°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 9.54°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 269.78°
  • Mean Anomaly: 219.84°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.008 km
  • Magnitude: 28.3

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 418 days (1.14 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 28.47 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.42 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.77 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of 2018 FK5 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.