480808 (1994 XL1)

Very small Aten-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Aten-class Asteroids » 480808 (1994 XL1)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a football field
  • Will pass within 12,259,749 km of Earth in 2022
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

480808 (1994 XL1) is a very small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 1994 XL1 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

1994 XL1 orbits the sun every 201 days (0.55 years), coming as close as 0.32 AU and reaching as far as 1.02 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 1994 XL1 is probably between 0.197 to 0.441 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a football field.

Close Approaches

1994 XL1'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.

1994 XL1 has 34 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Nov. 30, 2022 12,259,749 15.858
Dec. 11, 2027 20,147,525 17.518
Dec. 3, 2033 7,705,984 15.631
Dec. 11, 2038 26,465,215 18.601
Dec. 4, 2044 5,440,592 15.638
Nov. 26, 2050 25,684,856 17.484
Dec. 7, 2055 6,634,696 15.821
Nov. 27, 2061 20,408,556 16.691
Dec. 9, 2066 10,962,179 16.267
Nov. 29, 2072 14,878,133 16.069
Dec. 10, 2077 16,943,573 17.037
Dec. 2, 2083 9,763,118 15.718
Dec. 11, 2088 23,366,075 18.051
Dec. 4, 2094 6,159,552 15.628
Dec. 12, 2099 29,426,503 19.153
Nov. 26, 2100 28,249,412 17.946
Dec. 7, 2105 5,589,974 15.716
Nov. 28, 2111 23,094,612 17.103
Dec. 9, 2116 8,520,560 15.999
Nov. 29, 2122 17,616,730 16.380
Dec. 11, 2127 13,860,840 16.586
Dec. 1, 2133 12,170,805 15.873
Dec. 12, 2138 20,181,180 17.484
Dec. 4, 2144 7,640,762 15.639
Dec. 13, 2149 26,461,637 18.557
Dec. 7, 2155 5,454,656 15.635
Nov. 27, 2161 25,622,712 17.518
Dec. 8, 2166 6,727,573 15.809
Nov. 28, 2172 20,329,142 16.716
Dec. 10, 2177 11,075,005 16.248
Dec. 1, 2183 14,780,888 16.080
Dec. 12, 2188 17,034,309 17.008
Dec. 3, 2194 9,661,892 15.718
Dec. 13, 2199 23,435,859 18.019

Images and Observations

1994 XL1's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Dec. 9, 1994. It was last officially observed on Dec. 24, 2022. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 281 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 1994 XL1:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.6709 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.5262
  • Inclination: 28.17°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 252.65°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 356.57°
  • Mean Anomaly: 321.99°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.254 km
  • Magnitude: 20.65

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 201 days (0.55 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 36.31 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.02 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.32 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 480808 (1994 XL1) 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 1994 XL1 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.