302169 (2001 TD45)

Very small Aten-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Aten-class Asteroids » 302169 (2001 TD45)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the U.S. Capitol building
  • Will pass within 4,874,568 km of Earth in 2023
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

302169 (2001 TD45) is a very small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2001 TD45 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2001 TD45 orbits the sun every 260 days (0.71 years), coming as close as 0.18 AU and reaching as far as 1.42 AU from the sun. Its orbit is highly elliptical. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2001 TD45 is probably between 0.280 to 0.625 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 90% of asteroids but tiny compared to large asteroids, very roughly comparable in size to the U.S. Capitol building.

Close Approaches

2001 TD45's orbit is 0.03 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.

2001 TD45 has 19 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Oct. 26, 2023 4,874,568 25.679
Oct. 24, 2028 20,209,359 22.764
Oct. 30, 2050 14,363,742 28.944
Oct. 27, 2055 5,478,529 25.548
Oct. 24, 2060 21,346,908 22.598
Nov. 2, 2077 27,635,920 31.873
Oct. 29, 2082 9,607,031 27.903
Oct. 26, 2087 9,192,015 24.706
Oct. 24, 2092 25,131,705 22.043
Nov. 2, 2109 24,728,080 31.232
Oct. 29, 2114 7,143,133 27.295
Oct. 27, 2119 12,370,912 24.098
Oct. 26, 2124 28,573,558 21.589
Nov. 1, 2141 20,764,116 30.360
Oct. 29, 2146 5,335,904 26.695
Oct. 27, 2151 14,517,928 23.716
Nov. 1, 2173 19,932,720 30.166
Oct. 29, 2178 5,172,083 26.551
Oct. 27, 2183 15,390,931 23.587

Images and Observations

2001 TD45's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Oct. 14, 2001. It was last officially observed on Nov. 13, 2021. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 116 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 TD45:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.7967 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.7775
  • Inclination: 25.39°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 30.26°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 212.45°
  • Mean Anomaly: 5.41°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.361 km
  • Magnitude: 19.89

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 260 days (0.71 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 33.34 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.42 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.18 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 302169 (2001 TD45) 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 TD45 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.