306383 (1993 VD)

Very small Aten-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Aten-class Asteroids » 306383 (1993 VD)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a football field
  • Will pass within 11,838,076 km of Earth in 2027
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

306383 (1993 VD) is a very small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 1993 VD as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

1993 VD orbits the sun every 299 days (0.82 years), coming as close as 0.39 AU and reaching as far as 1.36 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 1993 VD is probably between 0.134 to 0.299 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a football field.

The rotation of 1993 VD has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 0.94 hours.

Close Approaches

1993 VD's orbit is 0.02 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.

1993 VD has 31 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Jan. 24, 2027 11,838,076 14.656
Oct. 26, 2034 24,832,213 12.650
Jan. 21, 2036 25,037,200 12.639
Oct. 24, 2043 12,615,971 14.450
Oct. 24, 2052 3,028,707 16.527
Jan. 18, 2059 27,166,183 22.456
Oct. 25, 2061 5,483,836 17.809
Jan. 20, 2068 17,642,614 20.359
Oct. 27, 2070 15,804,080 20.047
Jan. 22, 2077 7,300,730 17.983
Oct. 30, 2079 26,346,561 22.353
Jan. 23, 2086 5,387,427 16.150
Jan. 24, 2095 15,748,334 13.928
Oct. 27, 2102 21,497,006 13.047
Jan. 20, 2104 28,365,806 12.354
Oct. 25, 2111 7,441,328 15.454
Jan. 19, 2118 28,106,697 22.685
Oct. 26, 2120 6,664,489 18.082
Jan. 23, 2127 11,220,449 18.921
Oct. 30, 2129 24,695,637 21.971
Jan. 25, 2136 9,553,390 15.126
Oct. 27, 2143 20,821,465 13.142
Oct. 26, 2152 4,098,944 17.446
Jan. 24, 2159 6,160,503 17.689
Oct. 29, 2166 27,867,456 12.407
Jan. 23, 2168 24,148,129 12.716
Oct. 26, 2175 2,847,904 16.925
Jan. 24, 2182 7,733,229 18.137
Oct. 30, 2189 29,287,505 12.288
Jan. 24, 2191 22,546,509 12.926
Oct. 26, 2198 3,294,679 16.505

Images and Observations

1993 VD's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Nov. 9, 1993. It was last officially observed on Jan. 4, 2022. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 172 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 1993 VD:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.8758 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.5515
  • Inclination: 2.07°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 2.18°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 254.22°
  • Mean Anomaly: 245.14°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.173 km
  • Magnitude: 21.49

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 299 days (0.82 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 31.87 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.36 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.39 AU
  • Rotation Period: 0.94 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 306383 (1993 VD) 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 1993 VD 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.