242708 (2005 UK1)

Small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 242708 (2005 UK1)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the Golden Gate Bridge
  • Will pass within 12,355,836 km of Earth in 2026
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

242708 (2005 UK1) is a small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2005 UK1 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2005 UK1 orbits the sun every 1,440 days (3.94 years), coming as close as 0.76 AU and reaching as far as 4.24 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2005 UK1 is probably between 0.632 to 1.413 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than ~97% of asteroids but small compared to large asteroids, very roughly comparable in size to the Golden Gate Bridge.

The rotation of 2005 UK1 has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 63.80 hours.

Close Approaches

2005 UK1's orbit is 0.01 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.

2005 UK1 has 8 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Jan. 12, 2026 12,355,836 14.417
Dec. 24, 2029 23,083,974 21.454
May 25, 2101 23,210,230 21.363
April 29, 2105 18,250,115 13.551
Jan. 21, 2113 19,452,075 13.339
Dec. 25, 2116 23,228,359 21.501
May 19, 2188 8,897,335 18.537
April 19, 2192 24,639,280 13.090

Images and Observations

2005 UK1's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Oct. 24, 2005. It was last officially observed on June 3, 2022. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 578 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 2005 UK1:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 2.501 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.6953
  • Inclination: 0.79°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 180.31°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 345.95°
  • Mean Anomaly: 138.62°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.816 km
  • Magnitude: 18.12

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 1,440 days (3.94 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 18.89 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 4.24 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.76 AU
  • Rotation Period: 63.80 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 242708 (2005 UK1) 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 2005 UK1 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.