437905 (2001 XU30)

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 437905 (2001 XU30)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the U.S. Capitol building
  • Will pass within 21,193,828 km of Earth in 2028
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

437905 (2001 XU30) is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2001 XU30 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2001 XU30 orbits the sun every 1,190 days (3.26 years), coming as close as 0.74 AU and reaching as far as 3.66 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2001 XU30 is probably between 0.268 to 0.600 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 90% of asteroids but tiny compared to large asteroids, very roughly comparable in size to the U.S. Capitol building.

2001 XU30's spectral type None (Tholen) / Sq (SMASSII) indicates that it is likely to contain and .

Close Approaches

2001 XU30'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.

2001 XU30 has 3 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Jan. 18, 2028 21,193,828 14.384
May 21, 2171 19,018,087 14.405
June 5, 2184 5,262,402 18.526

Images and Observations

2001 XU30's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Dec. 13, 2001. It was last officially observed on June 13, 2015. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 184 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 2001 XU30:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 2.197 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.6647
  • Inclination: 8.92°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 72.05°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 107.1°
  • Mean Anomaly: 227.09°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.346 km
  • Magnitude: 19.98
  • Spectral type (SMASS): Sq

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 1,190 days (3.26 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 20.09 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 3.66 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.74 AU
  • Approx. Composition: and .

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 437905 (2001 XU30) 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 2001 XU30 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.