2020 XU6 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2020 XU6 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.
2020 XU6 orbits the sun every 1,210 days (3.31 years), coming as close as 0.99 AU and reaching as far as 3.45 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2020 XU6 is probably between 0.146 to 0.327 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a school bus or smaller.
2020 XU6'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.
2020 XU6 has 1 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:
Date | Distance from Earth (km) | Velocity (km/s) |
---|---|---|
Feb. 22, 2021 | 4,124,421 | 8.352 |
2020 XU6's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Dec. 14, 2020. It was last officially observed on Dec. 26, 2020. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 44 observations used to determine its orbit.
The position of 2020 XU6 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.
The below comparison is an artistic rendering that uses available data on the diameter of 2020 XU6 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.