531060 (2012 DJ61)

Very small Aten-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Aten-class Asteroids » 531060 (2012 DJ61)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the U.S. Capitol building
  • Will pass within 12,192,712 km of Earth in 2020
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

531060 (2012 DJ61) is a very small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2012 DJ61 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2012 DJ61 orbits the sun every 321 days (0.88 years), coming as close as 0.44 AU and reaching as far as 1.39 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2012 DJ61 is probably between 0.280 to 0.625 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 90% of asteroids but tiny compared to large asteroids, very roughly comparable in size to the U.S. Capitol building.

Close Approaches

2012 DJ61'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 DJ61 has 16 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
March 5, 2020 12,192,712 30.377
March 10, 2027 14,088,943 27.462
March 6, 2049 6,672,714 29.558
March 10, 2056 19,322,020 26.952
March 2, 2071 27,864,495 32.709
March 7, 2078 5,393,360 29.322
March 11, 2085 20,010,573 26.874
March 2, 2100 29,633,203 32.978
March 8, 2107 7,539,291 29.671
March 11, 2114 16,127,835 27.251
March 6, 2136 13,771,927 30.588
March 11, 2143 9,457,510 27.984
March 5, 2165 20,119,919 31.511
March 9, 2172 5,105,814 28.622
March 13, 2179 25,653,326 26.402
March 4, 2194 23,720,590 32.028

Images and Observations

2012 DJ61's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Feb. 28, 2012. It was last officially observed on March 4, 2020. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 116 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 DJ61:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.9176 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.5152
  • Inclination: 53.63°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 346.27°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 311.96°
  • Mean Anomaly: 293.32°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.361 km
  • Magnitude: 19.89

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 321 days (0.88 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 31.10 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.39 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.44 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 531060 (2012 DJ61) 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 DJ61 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.