2021 TK15

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 2021 TK15

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a basketball court
  • Will pass within 13,536,689 km of Earth in 2035
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2021 TK15 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2021 TK15 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2021 TK15 orbits the sun every 430 days (1.18 years), coming as close as 0.97 AU and reaching as far as 1.26 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2021 TK15 is probably between 0.112 to 0.251 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a basketball court.

Close Approaches

2021 TK15's orbit is 0.04 AU from Earth's orbit at its closest point. This means that there is a wide berth between this asteroid and Earth at all times.

2021 TK15 has 11 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
April 25, 2035 13,536,689 29.473
April 15, 2048 24,504,466 29.570
April 20, 2068 6,496,692 29.296
April 24, 2088 12,481,724 29.460
April 16, 2101 26,997,769 29.635
April 30, 2108 29,919,788 30.012
April 20, 2121 9,983,827 29.322
April 24, 2141 7,491,235 29.357
April 29, 2161 24,847,190 29.820
April 20, 2174 13,781,170 29.355
April 24, 2194 6,395,869 29.350

Images and Observations

2021 TK15's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Oct. 4, 2021. It was last officially observed on Nov. 9, 2021. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 49 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 2021 TK15:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.115 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.1339
  • Inclination: 56.52°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 31.55°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 162.35°
  • Mean Anomaly: 61.09°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.145 km
  • Magnitude: 21.87

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 430 days (1.18 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 28.21 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.26 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.97 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 2021 TK15 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.

Size Rendering

The below comparison is an artistic rendering that uses available data on the diameter of 2021 TK15 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.