481457 (2006 XD2)

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 481457 (2006 XD2)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a football field
  • Will pass within 25,866,786 km of Earth in 2026
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

481457 (2006 XD2) is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2006 XD2 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2006 XD2 orbits the sun every 521 days (1.43 years), coming as close as 0.73 AU and reaching as far as 1.81 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2006 XD2 is probably between 0.159 to 0.355 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a football field.

The rotation of 2006 XD2 has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 3.70 hours.

Close Approaches

2006 XD2'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 XD2 has 17 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Dec. 15, 2026 25,866,786 17.499
June 17, 2061 11,046,998 14.453
Jan. 7, 2064 21,155,371 8.393
June 8, 2071 10,039,088 10.518
Dec. 22, 2073 5,524,380 13.100
June 23, 2118 22,891,556 16.830
June 21, 2128 17,683,198 15.764
Jan. 26, 2131 28,809,692 8.522
June 19, 2138 9,423,230 14.126
Jan. 13, 2141 23,757,238 8.138
June 18, 2148 10,102,346 14.267
Jan. 21, 2151 26,688,524 8.226
June 24, 2158 23,457,639 16.912
Dec. 21, 2173 16,009,668 15.515
June 23, 2181 21,141,177 16.510
June 7, 2194 14,616,772 9.711
Jan. 9, 2197 20,740,517 8.527

Images and Observations

2006 XD2's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Nov. 17, 2006. It was last officially observed on Dec. 23, 2016. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 430 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 XD2:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.267 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.4251
  • Inclination: 3.56°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 65.59°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 109.54°
  • Mean Anomaly: 220.44°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.205 km
  • Magnitude: 21.12

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 521 days (1.43 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 26.46 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.81 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.73 AU
  • Rotation Period: 3.70 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 481457 (2006 XD2) 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 XD2 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.