276049 (2002 CE26)

Mid-sized Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 276049 (2002 CE26)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the island of Manhattan (3.50 km diameter)
  • Will pass within 26,819,990 km of Earth in 2024
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

276049 (2002 CE26) is a mid-sized asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2002 CE26 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.

2002 CE26 orbits the sun every 1,220 days (3.34 years), coming as close as 0.98 AU and reaching as far as 3.49 AU from the sun. 2002 CE26 is about 3.5 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the island of Manhattan.

The rotation of 2002 CE26 has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 3.29 hours.

2002 CE26's spectral type C (Tholen) / None (SMASSII) indicates that it is likely to contain water, iron, nickel, cobalt, nitrogen, and ammonia.

Close Approaches

2002 CE26's orbit is 0.10 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.

2002 CE26 has 4 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Sept. 11, 2024 26,819,990 25.886
Sept. 2, 2171 19,659,435 28.561
Sept. 5, 2181 12,213,098 27.629
Sept. 9, 2191 13,903,256 26.638

Images and Observations

2002 CE26's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Dec. 26, 2001. It was last officially observed on April 27, 2022. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 1,749 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 2002 CE26:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 2.233 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.5611
  • Inclination: 47.29°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 161.89°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 228.04°
  • Mean Anomaly: 239.91°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 3.50000 km
  • Magnitude: 16.68
  • Albedo: .07
  • Spectral type (Tholen): C

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 1,220 days (3.34 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 19.91 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 3.49 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.98 AU
  • Rotation Period: 3.29 hours
  • Approx. Composition: water, iron, nickel, cobalt, nitrogen, and ammonia.

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 276049 (2002 CE26) 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 2002 CE26 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.