386454 (2008 XM)

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 386454 (2008 XM)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the U.S. Capitol building (0.37 km diameter)
  • Will pass within 12,031,371 km of Earth in 2031
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

386454 (2008 XM) is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2008 XM as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2008 XM orbits the sun every 494 days (1.35 years), coming as close as 0.11 AU and reaching as far as 2.33 AU from the sun. Its orbit is highly elliptical. 2008 XM 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.

Close Approaches

2008 XM'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.

2008 XM has 19 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Nov. 17, 2031 12,031,371 31.798
Jan. 12, 2033 25,678,711 38.888
Jan. 23, 2037 24,079,077 30.008
Nov. 22, 2058 5,905,672 35.362
Jan. 18, 2060 12,567,500 34.975
Nov. 19, 2081 5,451,980 33.050
Jan. 15, 2083 19,754,371 37.397
Nov. 15, 2104 27,296,610 28.994
Nov. 26, 2108 16,545,942 37.613
Jan. 21, 2110 13,148,114 32.861
Nov. 20, 2131 7,471,795 32.684
Jan. 15, 2133 21,466,762 37.844
Jan. 25, 2137 27,768,972 29.253
Nov. 25, 2158 10,801,546 36.398
Jan. 21, 2160 11,637,041 33.955
Nov. 19, 2181 12,800,935 31.630
Jan. 14, 2183 26,551,075 39.141
Nov. 30, 2185 29,636,905 40.517
Jan. 25, 2187 22,527,459 30.314

Images and Observations

2008 XM's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Dec. 2, 2008. It was last officially observed on Jan. 29, 2014. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 89 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 2008 XM:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.222 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.9091
  • Inclination: 5.44°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 240.6°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 27.4°
  • Mean Anomaly: 9.28°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 0.36700 km
  • Magnitude: 19.99
  • Albedo: 0.128

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 494 days (1.35 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 26.91 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 2.33 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.11 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 386454 (2008 XM) 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 2008 XM 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.