Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a basketball court
  • Will pass within 14,996,536 km of Earth in 2029
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

513126 (1998 QP) is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 1998 QP as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

1998 QP orbits the sun every 872 days (2.39 years), coming as close as 0.75 AU and reaching as far as 2.83 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 1998 QP is probably between 0.121 to 0.270 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a basketball court.

Close Approaches

1998 QP's orbit is 0.01 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.

1998 QP has 10 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Sept. 1, 2029 14,996,536 13.289
Jan. 5, 2049 23,838,804 11.879
Aug. 23, 2072 3,844,714 16.470
Jan. 20, 2080 12,615,092 16.775
Aug. 25, 2103 3,824,254 16.402
Jan. 18, 2111 11,688,057 15.346
Aug. 29, 2153 7,265,927 14.733
Jan. 25, 2161 17,332,617 18.584
Aug. 23, 2184 6,531,925 17.044
Jan. 15, 2192 15,133,347 13.792

Images and Observations

1998 QP's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Aug. 17, 1998. It was last officially observed on Feb. 21, 2018. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 257 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 1998 QP:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.786 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.5826
  • Inclination: 9.35°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 326.45°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 78.42°
  • Mean Anomaly: 160.71°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.156 km
  • Magnitude: 21.71

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 872 days (2.39 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 22.28 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 2.83 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.75 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of 513126 (1998 QP) 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 1998 QP 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.