490581 (2009 WZ104)

Very small Aten-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Aten-class Asteroids » 490581 (2009 WZ104)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a football field (0.24 km diameter)
  • Will pass within 4,781,145 km of Earth in 2028
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

490581 (2009 WZ104) is a very small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2009 WZ104 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2009 WZ104 orbits the sun every 289 days (0.79 years), coming as close as 0.69 AU and reaching as far as 1.02 AU from the sun. 2009 WZ104 is about 0.2 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, comparable in size to a football field.

The rotation of 2009 WZ104 has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 19.30 hours.

Close Approaches

2009 WZ104's orbit is 0.03 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.

2009 WZ104 has 19 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Dec. 14, 2028 4,781,145 6.205
Nov. 29, 2043 15,864,622 8.302
Jan. 7, 2048 14,498,327 6.642
Dec. 13, 2062 4,527,811 6.237
Jan. 20, 2067 29,826,951 9.815
Nov. 29, 2077 16,071,321 8.339
Jan. 5, 2082 14,124,486 6.585
Dec. 8, 2096 5,058,988 6.463
Jan. 17, 2101 22,524,896 8.097
Dec. 10, 2115 4,979,956 6.452
Jan. 17, 2120 21,209,809 7.792
Dec. 6, 2134 6,909,984 6.773
Jan. 13, 2139 18,920,176 7.297
Dec. 17, 2153 5,040,362 6.151
Dec. 22, 2168 7,521,883 6.125
Nov. 30, 2179 23,293,689 9.751
Jan. 7, 2184 14,926,840 6.682
Dec. 3, 2194 10,844,549 7.408
Jan. 18, 2199 26,585,959 8.944

Images and Observations

2009 WZ104's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Nov. 19, 2005. It was last officially observed on Dec. 23, 2017. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 1,188 observations used to determine its orbit.

Accessibility and Exploration

2009 WZ104 can be reached with a journey of 186 days. This trajectory would require a delta-v of 9.766 km/s. To put this into perspective, the delta-v to launch a rocket to Low-Earth Orbit is 9.7 km/s. There are 1,519 potential trajectories and launch windows to this asteroid.

See more at the NHATS Mission Trajectories table for 2009 WZ104.

Similar Objects

These objects have orbits that share similar characteristics to the orbit of 2009 WZ104:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.8553 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.1927
  • Inclination: 9.83°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 263.25°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 10.55°
  • Mean Anomaly: 293.1°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 0.23700 km
  • Magnitude: 20.85
  • Albedo: 0.314

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 289 days (0.79 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 32.20 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.02 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.69 AU
  • Rotation Period: 19.30 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 490581 (2009 WZ104) 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 2009 WZ104 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.