Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a school bus or smaller
  • Will pass within 9,668,097 km of Earth in 2022
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2022 SM11 is a very small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2022 SM11 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.

2022 SM11 orbits the sun every 293 days (0.80 years), coming as close as 0.66 AU and reaching as far as 1.07 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2022 SM11 is probably between 0.015 to 0.035 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a school bus or smaller.

Close Approaches

2022 SM11's orbit is 0.06 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.

2022 SM11 has 8 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Sept. 26, 2022 9,668,097 9.851
Sept. 21, 2026 13,275,524 10.048
Sept. 16, 2030 20,152,439 10.618
Sept. 11, 2034 29,038,333 11.712
Oct. 13, 2185 29,734,309 11.815
Oct. 9, 2189 21,135,515 10.723
Oct. 4, 2193 13,791,701 10.065
Sept. 29, 2197 9,772,879 9.835

Images and Observations

2022 SM11's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Sept. 25, 2022. It was last officially observed on Oct. 1, 2022. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 19 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 2022 SM11:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.8634 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.235
  • Inclination: 18.4°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 183.98°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 356.82°
  • Mean Anomaly: 254.5°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.020 km
  • Magnitude: 26.18

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 293 days (0.80 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 32.06 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.07 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.66 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of 2022 SM11 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.