495187 (2012 VO76)

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 495187 (2012 VO76)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a football field
  • Will pass within 21,249,988 km of Earth in 2050
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

495187 (2012 VO76) is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2012 VO76 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2012 VO76 orbits the sun every 483 days (1.32 years), coming as close as 0.95 AU and reaching as far as 1.46 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2012 VO76 is probably between 0.164 to 0.366 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a football field.

Close Approaches

2012 VO76'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.

2012 VO76 has 9 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
May 14, 2050 21,249,988 21.050
May 7, 2054 11,132,020 19.285
May 14, 2087 20,505,015 20.990
May 7, 2091 12,494,812 19.230
May 13, 2124 14,568,711 20.516
May 6, 2128 18,566,620 19.080
May 13, 2161 10,635,119 20.212
May 6, 2165 22,201,172 19.026
May 14, 2198 13,187,004 20.405

Images and Observations

2012 VO76's orbit is determined by observations dating back to June 1, 2009. It was last officially observed on June 17, 2021. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 130 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 2012 VO76:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.204 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.215
  • Inclination: 36.95°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 229.47°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 297.39°
  • Mean Anomaly: 334.4°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.212 km
  • Magnitude: 21.05

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 483 days (1.32 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 27.12 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.46 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.95 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 495187 (2012 VO76) 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 2012 VO76 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.