363505 (2003 UC20)

Mid-sized Aten-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Aten-class Asteroids » 363505 (2003 UC20)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to Mount Everest (1.88 km diameter)
  • Will pass within 23,591,570 km of Earth in 2022
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

363505 (2003 UC20) is a mid-sized asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2003 UC20 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2003 UC20 orbits the sun every 252 days (0.69 years), coming as close as 0.52 AU and reaching as far as 1.04 AU from the sun. 2003 UC20 is about 1.9 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to Mount Everest.

The rotation of 2003 UC20 has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 29.60 hours.

Close Approaches

2003 UC20's orbit is 0.04 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.

2003 UC20 has 32 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Jan. 1, 2022 23,591,570 12.519
Nov. 2, 2023 5,252,598 7.971
Dec. 1, 2032 12,374,957 6.537
Dec. 30, 2041 9,975,101 8.202
Oct. 31, 2043 19,229,606 12.039
Jan. 1, 2051 24,345,833 12.713
Nov. 2, 2052 5,449,082 7.832
Dec. 4, 2061 12,451,945 6.525
Jan. 1, 2071 10,912,061 8.829
Oct. 30, 2072 15,824,581 11.218
Dec. 31, 2079 28,765,857 13.781
Nov. 7, 2081 7,394,474 7.096
Dec. 19, 2090 11,204,966 6.726
Nov. 1, 2092 29,367,587 14.342
Jan. 2, 2100 18,198,649 11.174
Nov. 1, 2101 7,086,588 8.929
Nov. 22, 2110 11,505,315 6.538
Dec. 29, 2119 9,759,532 7.363
Nov. 1, 2121 23,690,225 13.021
Jan. 2, 2129 22,111,048 12.168
Nov. 3, 2130 5,770,115 8.153
Nov. 27, 2139 12,210,263 6.522
Dec. 29, 2148 9,616,341 7.483
Nov. 2, 2150 23,321,923 12.945
Jan. 2, 2158 21,594,060 12.057
Nov. 3, 2159 6,000,590 8.257
Nov. 23, 2168 11,856,552 6.531
Dec. 25, 2177 10,427,453 6.928
Nov. 3, 2179 28,276,392 14.082
Jan. 3, 2187 14,415,481 10.147
Oct. 31, 2188 11,309,562 10.059
Nov. 11, 2197 8,872,432 6.854

Images and Observations

2003 UC20's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Dec. 5, 1954. It was last officially observed on Dec. 15, 2021. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 746 observations used to determine its orbit.

Accessibility and Exploration

2003 UC20 can be reached with a journey of 322 days. This trajectory would require a delta-v of 11.852 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 23 potential trajectories and launch windows to this asteroid.

See more at the NHATS Mission Trajectories table for 2003 UC20.

Similar Objects

These objects have orbits that share similar characteristics to the orbit of 2003 UC20:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.7811 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.337
  • Inclination: 3.81°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 188.29°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 59.78°
  • Mean Anomaly: 55.95°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 1.87600 km
  • Magnitude: 18.5
  • Albedo: 0.029

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 252 days (0.69 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 33.72 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.04 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.52 AU
  • Rotation Period: 29.60 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 363505 (2003 UC20) 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 2003 UC20 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.