417211 (2005 XL80)

Small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 417211 (2005 XL80)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the Golden Gate Bridge
  • Will pass within 16,087,784 km of Earth in 2040
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

417211 (2005 XL80) is a small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2005 XL80 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2005 XL80 orbits the sun every 829 days (2.27 years), coming as close as 0.89 AU and reaching as far as 2.57 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2005 XL80 is probably between 0.595 to 1.331 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than ~97% of asteroids but small compared to large asteroids, very roughly comparable in size to the Golden Gate Bridge.

Close Approaches

2005 XL80'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.

2005 XL80 has 9 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
May 3, 2040 16,087,784 10.478
Feb. 22, 2065 27,851,976 11.207
May 25, 2074 6,654,980 11.973
April 7, 2099 24,018,651 10.456
June 12, 2108 26,278,237 16.275
May 17, 2133 10,278,946 10.940
Feb. 27, 2158 27,602,346 11.015
May 26, 2167 7,111,933 11.851
March 20, 2192 26,009,845 10.318

Images and Observations

2005 XL80's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Dec. 8, 2005. It was last officially observed on Oct. 16, 2022. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 346 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 2005 XL80:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.727 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.4871
  • Inclination: 10.9°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 53.31°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 143.75°
  • Mean Anomaly: 249.47°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.768 km
  • Magnitude: 18.25

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 829 days (2.27 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 22.66 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 2.57 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.89 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 417211 (2005 XL80) 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 2005 XL80 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.