2020 OY4 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2020 OY4 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 OY4 orbits the sun every 376 days (1.03 years), coming as close as 0.62 AU and reaching as far as 1.42 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2020 OY4 is probably between 0.002 to 0.007 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a school bus or smaller.
2020 OY4's orbit is 0.00 AU from Earth's orbit at its closest point. This means that its orbit is very close to Earth's orbit.
2020 OY4 has 8 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:
| Date | Distance from Earth (km) | Velocity (km/s) |
|---|---|---|
| July 28, 2020 | 41,498 | 12.391 |
| July 26, 2021 | 26,313,878 | 7.166 |
| March 5, 2028 | 25,173,715 | 7.057 |
| March 7, 2029 | 6,746,173 | 12.147 |
| July 23, 2054 | 19,269,595 | 15.380 |
| July 30, 2055 | 7,019,172 | 10.235 |
| March 3, 2063 | 16,056,563 | 8.664 |
| March 9, 2064 | 14,896,950 | 14.283 |
2020 OY4's orbit is determined by observations dating back to July 26, 2020. It was last officially observed on July 28, 2020. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 68 observations used to determine its orbit.
2020 OY4 can be reached with a journey of 442 days. This trajectory would require a delta-v of 11.28 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 375 potential trajectories and launch windows to this asteroid.
See more at the NHATS Mission Trajectories table for 2020 OY4.
The position of 2020 OY4 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.