Key Facts
- Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
- Comparable in size to a football field (0.33 km diameter)
- Will pass within 12,760,467 km of Earth in 2033
- Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
- Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
- See orbit simulation
Overview
Itokawa is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified Itokawa as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.
Itokawa orbits the sun every 557 days (1.52 years), coming as close as 0.95 AU and reaching as far as 1.70 AU from the sun. Itokawa is about 0.3 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 90% of asteroids but tiny compared to large asteroids, comparable in size to a football field.
The rotation of Itokawa has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 12.13 hours.
Itokawa's spectral type None (Tholen) / S(IV) (SMASSII) indicates that it is likely to contain and .
Close Approaches
Itokawa'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.
Itokawa has 14 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:
| Date | Distance from Earth (km) | Velocity (km/s) |
|---|---|---|
| March 23, 2033 | 12,760,467 | 8.554 |
| June 11, 2036 | 6,073,561 | 5.216 |
| July 17, 2039 | 27,721,137 | 11.606 |
| April 9, 2071 | 4,066,362 | 5.630 |
| July 5, 2074 | 7,042,973 | 7.434 |
| March 21, 2100 | 19,250,807 | 9.899 |
| June 9, 2103 | 6,796,701 | 5.147 |
| March 18, 2132 | 24,294,601 | 10.941 |
| May 16, 2135 | 8,662,645 | 5.124 |
| July 16, 2138 | 22,065,961 | 10.504 |
| April 9, 2167 | 3,748,703 | 5.758 |
| July 9, 2170 | 10,357,100 | 8.099 |
| April 13, 2196 | 4,521,750 | 5.506 |
| July 16, 2199 | 20,819,286 | 10.223 |
Images and Observations
Itokawa's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Sept. 19, 1998. It was last officially observed on March 25, 2022. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 951 observations used to determine its orbit.
Accessibility and Exploration
Itokawa can be reached with a journey of 210 days. This trajectory would require a delta-v of 9.409 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 21,558 potential trajectories and launch windows to this asteroid.
See more at the NHATS Mission Trajectories table for Itokawa.
Similar Objects
These objects have orbits that share similar characteristics to the orbit of Itokawa:References
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or view a random objectOrbital Elements
- Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
- Semi-major axis: 1.324 AU
- Eccentricity: 0.2803
- Inclination: 1.62°
- Longitude of Ascending Node: 69.08°
- Argument of Periapsis: 162.83°
- Mean Anomaly: 243.81°
Physical Characteristics
- Diameter: 0.33000 km
- Magnitude: 19.26
- Spectral type (SMASS): S(IV)
Derived Characteristics
- Orbit Period: 557 days (1.52 years)
- Avg. Orbit Speed: 25.86 km/s
- Aphelion Distance: 1.70 AU
- Perihelion Distance: 0.95 AU
- Rotation Period: 12.13 hours
- Approx. Composition: and .
Map Comparison
Orbit Simulation
Sky Map
The position of Itokawa 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 Itokawa 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.
