417612 (2006 WQ29)

Small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 417612 (2006 WQ29)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the Golden Gate Bridge
  • Will pass within 23,695,724 km of Earth in 2042
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

417612 (2006 WQ29) is a small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2006 WQ29 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2006 WQ29 orbits the sun every 740 days (2.03 years), coming as close as 0.97 AU and reaching as far as 2.23 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2006 WQ29 is probably between 0.545 to 1.219 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

2006 WQ29'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.

2006 WQ29 has 9 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
April 21, 2042 23,695,724 9.398
May 31, 2044 16,308,118 7.241
July 6, 2046 3,231,223 8.480
July 20, 2048 17,666,764 11.760
April 24, 2127 23,584,494 9.315
May 29, 2129 16,837,191 7.297
July 4, 2131 4,986,456 8.067
July 18, 2133 11,149,210 10.507
July 28, 2135 29,020,583 13.816

Images and Observations

2006 WQ29's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Dec. 3, 2002. It was last officially observed on Nov. 25, 2022. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 170 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 2006 WQ29:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.601 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.3939
  • Inclination: 8.07°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 111.98°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 136.6°
  • Mean Anomaly: 280.15°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.704 km
  • Magnitude: 18.44

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 740 days (2.03 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 23.54 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 2.23 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.97 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 417612 (2006 WQ29) 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 2006 WQ29 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.