2020 KA is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2020 KA 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.
2020 KA orbits the sun every 394 days (1.08 years), coming as close as 0.87 AU and reaching as far as 1.23 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2020 KA is probably between 0.006 to 0.025 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a school bus or smaller.
2020 KA's orbit is 0.01 AU from Earth's orbit at its closest point. This means that its orbit is relatively close to Earth's orbit.
2020 KA has 25 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:
| Date | Distance from Earth (km) | Velocity (km/s) |
|---|---|---|
| May 19, 2020 | 765,470 | 5.808 |
| Nov. 6, 2021 | 5,725,103 | 4.847 |
| June 27, 2034 | 17,899,510 | 4.253 |
| Nov. 12, 2035 | 14,667,160 | 8.508 |
| May 11, 2047 | 20,258,181 | 9.579 |
| Sept. 9, 2048 | 21,277,007 | 4.632 |
| Dec. 10, 2048 | 24,684,854 | 4.112 |
| May 21, 2061 | 4,270,969 | 4.986 |
| Nov. 7, 2062 | 3,573,415 | 6.057 |
| June 6, 2074 | 12,951,135 | 3.797 |
| Nov. 11, 2075 | 15,774,493 | 8.714 |
| Aug. 19, 2087 | 22,493,996 | 4.999 |
| Dec. 23, 2087 | 29,521,740 | 4.714 |
| May 16, 2099 | 8,101,116 | 7.256 |
| Nov. 5, 2100 | 8,581,349 | 4.279 |
| May 14, 2112 | 12,915,503 | 8.166 |
| Aug. 14, 2126 | 22,853,262 | 5.052 |
| June 11, 2139 | 14,110,627 | 3.803 |
| Nov. 11, 2140 | 12,862,284 | 8.132 |
| May 25, 2152 | 8,045,866 | 4.345 |
| Nov. 10, 2153 | 9,583,383 | 7.453 |
| April 3, 2165 | 29,908,499 | 4.363 |
| Aug. 2, 2165 | 22,167,662 | 4.967 |
| May 14, 2177 | 16,216,858 | 8.791 |
| May 20, 2190 | 1,266,633 | 6.011 |
2020 KA's orbit is determined by observations dating back to May 16, 2020. It was last officially observed on May 17, 2020. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 36 observations used to determine its orbit.
2020 KA can be reached with a journey of 354 days. This trajectory would require a delta-v of 5.744 km/s. To put this into perspective, the delta-v to launch a rocket to Low-Earth Orbit is 9.7 km/s. There are 303,405 potential trajectories and launch windows to this asteroid.
See more at the NHATS Mission Trajectories table for 2020 KA.
The position of 2020 KA 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.