444584 (2006 UK)

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 444584 (2006 UK)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a football field
  • Will pass within 4,739,036 km of Earth in 2058
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

444584 (2006 UK) is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2006 UK as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2006 UK orbits the sun every 667 days (1.83 years), coming as close as 0.69 AU and reaching as far as 2.30 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2006 UK is probably between 0.237 to 0.530 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 90% of asteroids but tiny compared to large asteroids, very roughly comparable in size to a football field.

The rotation of 2006 UK has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 5.72 hours.

Close Approaches

2006 UK's orbit is 0.01 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 UK has 12 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
May 2, 2058 4,739,036 15.394
Nov. 17, 2059 2,021,250 15.172
April 11, 2069 27,580,918 10.439
Nov. 7, 2070 26,585,819 20.563
May 8, 2111 12,033,332 17.471
Nov. 25, 2112 13,671,290 12.627
April 29, 2122 10,705,825 13.381
Nov. 16, 2123 7,548,837 16.774
May 7, 2164 9,077,916 16.869
Nov. 24, 2165 11,353,730 13.097
April 29, 2175 11,320,210 13.261
Nov. 15, 2176 8,402,098 16.943

Images and Observations

2006 UK's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Oct. 17, 2006. It was last officially observed on Nov. 18, 2017. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 383 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 UK:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.494 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.5388
  • Inclination: 4.75°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 243.92°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 252.36°
  • Mean Anomaly: 40.05°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.306 km
  • Magnitude: 20.25

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 667 days (1.83 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 24.37 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 2.30 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.69 AU
  • Rotation Period: 5.72 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 444584 (2006 UK) 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 2006 UK 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.