215588 (2003 HF2)

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 215588 (2003 HF2)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the Golden Gate Bridge (0.49 km diameter)
  • Will pass within 8,059,073 km of Earth in 2027
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

215588 (2003 HF2) is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2003 HF2 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2003 HF2 orbits the sun every 429 days (1.17 years), coming as close as 0.36 AU and reaching as far as 1.87 AU from the sun. 2003 HF2 is about 0.5 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 90% of asteroids but tiny compared to large asteroids, comparable in size to the Golden Gate Bridge.

Close Approaches

2003 HF2'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.

2003 HF2 has 21 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
July 17, 2027 8,059,073 22.002
March 25, 2037 7,674,736 20.127
July 12, 2047 20,954,628 25.535
July 22, 2054 26,112,523 16.978
March 22, 2057 28,869,105 16.234
March 31, 2064 16,090,052 24.856
July 18, 2074 8,882,419 20.825
March 26, 2084 4,143,671 20.799
July 10, 2094 25,956,923 26.620
July 21, 2101 14,901,095 19.216
March 28, 2111 4,791,248 20.667
April 5, 2118 28,963,020 27.515
July 18, 2128 7,856,374 21.434
March 24, 2138 22,622,008 17.325
April 1, 2145 11,746,047 23.987
July 15, 2155 16,562,507 24.555
July 23, 2162 20,154,920 18.095
March 27, 2172 5,077,653 20.636
April 5, 2179 26,073,429 26.924
July 17, 2189 10,127,779 22.928
July 23, 2196 23,512,511 17.469

Images and Observations

2003 HF2's orbit is determined by observations dating back to May 10, 2002. It was last officially observed on May 23, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 431 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 2003 HF2:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.114 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.6755
  • Inclination: 3.06°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 189.89°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 231.03°
  • Mean Anomaly: 220.01°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 0.48800 km
  • Magnitude: 19.42
  • Albedo: 0.118

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 429 days (1.17 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 28.25 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.87 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.36 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 215588 (2003 HF2) 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 2003 HF2 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.