525268 (2004 XL14)

Very small Aten-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Aten-class Asteroids » 525268 (2004 XL14)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a football field
  • Will pass within 24,675,805 km of Earth in 2049
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

525268 (2004 XL14) is a very small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2004 XL14 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2004 XL14 orbits the sun every 242 days (0.66 years), coming as close as 0.45 AU and reaching as far as 1.07 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2004 XL14 is probably between 0.138 to 0.308 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a football field.

Close Approaches

2004 XL14'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.

2004 XL14 has 22 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Dec. 5, 2049 24,675,805 12.439
Dec. 12, 2051 17,781,948 12.415
Dec. 16, 2053 10,370,910 12.728
Dec. 20, 2055 4,328,400 13.459
Dec. 21, 2057 8,774,023 14.604
Dec. 22, 2059 18,265,228 16.225
Dec. 20, 2061 28,799,948 18.191
Dec. 5, 2098 25,381,764 12.461
Dec. 12, 2100 18,671,856 12.403
Dec. 17, 2102 11,303,426 12.663
Dec. 20, 2104 4,792,844 13.335
Dec. 22, 2106 7,634,722 14.396
Dec. 22, 2108 16,653,650 15.922
Dec. 22, 2110 26,998,404 17.824
Dec. 2, 2147 29,138,333 12.627
Dec. 8, 2149 23,147,378 12.422
Dec. 14, 2151 16,581,448 12.446
Dec. 18, 2153 9,602,665 12.784
Dec. 21, 2155 4,423,845 13.499
Dec. 22, 2157 8,859,446 14.574
Dec. 23, 2159 17,638,439 16.070
Dec. 22, 2161 27,567,576 17.927

Images and Observations

2004 XL14's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Dec. 10, 2004. It was last officially observed on Dec. 6, 2018. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 280 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 2004 XL14:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.7595 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.4104
  • Inclination: 21.46°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 85.61°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 157.58°
  • Mean Anomaly: 327.07°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.178 km
  • Magnitude: 21.43

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 242 days (0.66 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 34.14 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.07 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.45 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 525268 (2004 XL14) 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 2004 XL14 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.