267337 (2001 VK5)

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 267337 (2001 VK5)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the U.S. Capitol building (0.44 km diameter)
  • Will pass within 21,349,131 km of Earth in 2051
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

267337 (2001 VK5) is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2001 VK5 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2001 VK5 orbits the sun every 522 days (1.43 years), coming as close as 0.62 AU and reaching as far as 1.92 AU from the sun. 2001 VK5 is about 0.4 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 90% of asteroids but tiny compared to large asteroids, comparable in size to the U.S. Capitol building.

The rotation of 2001 VK5 has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 39.05 hours.

Close Approaches

2001 VK5'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.

2001 VK5 has 12 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Nov. 10, 2051 21,349,131 15.499
Nov. 12, 2061 13,518,188 16.739
Nov. 13, 2071 11,782,367 17.006
Nov. 12, 2081 14,915,975 16.517
Nov. 11, 2091 19,229,804 15.829
Nov. 10, 2101 24,455,621 15.004
May 18, 2144 28,709,477 14.862
May 13, 2154 20,448,288 16.119
May 11, 2164 16,012,293 16.935
May 10, 2174 14,005,790 17.328
May 8, 2184 12,004,970 17.804
May 8, 2194 11,175,887 18.031

Images and Observations

2001 VK5's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Nov. 11, 2001. It was last officially observed on Dec. 30, 2021. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 730 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 2001 VK5:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.269 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.514
  • Inclination: 19.43°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 54.22°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 263.94°
  • Mean Anomaly: 148.94°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 0.43900 km
  • Magnitude: 18.09
  • Albedo: 0.578

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 522 days (1.43 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 26.45 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.92 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.62 AU
  • Rotation Period: 39.05 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 267337 (2001 VK5) 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 2001 VK5 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.