Chelyabinsk

Key Facts

• Categorized as a Amor-class Asteroid
• Comparable in size to Mount Everest (2.79 km diameter)
• Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
• Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
• See orbit simulation

Overview

Chelyabinsk is a mid-sized asteroid whose orbit approaches the orbit of Earth but does not cross it. NASA JPL has classified Chelyabinsk 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.

Chelyabinsk orbits the sun every 814 days (2.23 years), coming as close as 1.30 AU and reaching as far as 2.11 AU from the sun. Chelyabinsk is about 2.8 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to Mount Everest.

The rotation of Chelyabinsk has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 11.23 hours.

No Close Approaches

Chelyabinsk's orbit is 0.31 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.

Orbital simulations conducted by NASA JPL's CNEOS do not show any close approaches to Earth.

Images and Observations

Chelyabinsk's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Jan. 30, 1990. It was last officially observed on April 9, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 5,862 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 Chelyabinsk:

• 1747 Wright (1947 NH)
• 1980 Tezcatlipoca (1950 LA)
• 5828 (1991 AM)

References

• JPL Small Body Database
• Mission Design
• Sky Finder Chart

Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of Chelyabinsk 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 above comparison is an artistic rendering that uses available data on the diameter of Chelyabinsk to create an approximate landscape rendering with Mount Everest in the background. This approximation is built for full-resolution desktop browsers. Shape, color, and texture of asteroid are imagined.