Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a school bus or smaller
  • Will pass within 1,354,688 km of Earth in 2020
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2020 UR is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2020 UR 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 UR orbits the sun every 548 days (1.50 years), coming as close as 0.73 AU and reaching as far as 1.89 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2020 UR is probably between 0.007 to 0.016 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a school bus or smaller.

Close Approaches

2020 UR'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 UR has 5 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Oct. 20, 2020 1,354,688 12.582
Oct. 20, 2023 2,230,695 12.914
Oct. 15, 2026 12,527,783 14.996
Oct. 10, 2029 26,324,376 17.700
Oct. 12, 2114 25,729,731 17.586

Images and Observations

2020 UR's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Oct. 16, 2020. It was last officially observed on Oct. 19, 2020. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 30 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 2020 UR:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2459139.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.31 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.4408
  • Inclination: 5.82°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 201.95°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 267.45°
  • Mean Anomaly: 321.9°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.009 km
  • Magnitude: 27.9

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 548 days (1.50 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 26.01 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.89 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.73 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2020 UR 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.