4953 (1990 MU)

Mid-sized Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 4953 (1990 MU)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the island of Manhattan
  • Will pass within 4,612,208 km of Earth in 2027
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

4953 (1990 MU) is a mid-sized asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 1990 MU as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

1990 MU orbits the sun every 754 days (2.06 years), coming as close as 0.56 AU and reaching as far as 2.69 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 1990 MU is probably between 2.720 to 6.082 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, very roughly comparable in size to the island of Manhattan.

The rotation of 1990 MU has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 14.22 hours.

Close Approaches

1990 MU'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.

1990 MU has 11 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
June 6, 2027 4,612,208 23.817
Nov. 24, 2049 18,364,138 25.435
June 5, 2058 3,454,335 23.117
Nov. 19, 2080 28,397,686 27.924
May 30, 2089 18,712,127 20.273
Dec. 6, 2113 23,091,383 20.886
June 13, 2122 22,781,204 27.333
Dec. 1, 2144 15,731,952 22.605
June 10, 2153 13,600,421 25.697
Nov. 30, 2175 14,197,384 23.177
June 10, 2184 11,629,989 25.361

Images and Observations

1990 MU's orbit is determined by observations dating back to July 21, 1974. It was last officially observed on Aug. 5, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 2,365 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 1990 MU:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.621 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.6574
  • Inclination: 24.38°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 77.53°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 77.94°
  • Mean Anomaly: 94.0°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~3.511 km
  • Magnitude: 14.95

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 754 days (2.06 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 23.39 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 2.69 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.56 AU
  • Rotation Period: 14.22 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 4953 (1990 MU) 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 above comparison is an artistic rendering that uses available data on the diameter of 1990 MU to create an approximate landscape rendering with Mount Everest in the background. This approximation is built for full-resolution desktop browsers. Shape, color, and texture of asteroid are imagined.