Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a school bus or smaller
  • Will pass within 478,855 km of Earth in 2021
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2021 TL14 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2021 TL14 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.

2021 TL14 orbits the sun every 483 days (1.32 years), coming as close as 1.00 AU and reaching as far as 1.41 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2021 TL14 is probably between 0.007 to 0.033 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a school bus or smaller.

Close Approaches

2021 TL14'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.

2021 TL14 has 4 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Oct. 14, 2021 478,855 6.049
Sept. 18, 2025 27,862,509 8.662
Nov. 2, 2058 19,651,679 7.343
Oct. 7, 2062 6,749,031 6.136

Images and Observations

2021 TL14's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Oct. 14, 2021. It was last officially observed on Oct. 16, 2021. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 110 observations used to determine its orbit.

Accessibility and Exploration

2021 TL14 can be reached with a journey of 362 days. This trajectory would require a delta-v of 7.774 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 5,331 potential trajectories and launch windows to this asteroid.

See more at the NHATS Mission Trajectories table for 2021 TL14.

Similar Objects

These objects have orbits that share similar characteristics to the orbit of 2021 TL14:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.205 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.1708
  • Inclination: 10.03°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 20.95°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 7.21°
  • Mean Anomaly: 155.44°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.020 km
  • Magnitude: 26.89

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 483 days (1.32 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 27.14 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.41 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 1.00 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of 2021 TL14 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.