612356 (2002 JX8)

Very small Aten-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Aten-class Asteroids » 612356 (2002 JX8)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the U.S. Capitol building
  • Will pass within 15,163,477 km of Earth in 2023
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

612356 (2002 JX8) is a very small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2002 JX8 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2002 JX8 orbits the sun every 247 days (0.68 years), coming as close as 0.53 AU and reaching as far as 1.01 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2002 JX8 is probably between 0.143 to 0.638 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

2002 JX8'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.

2002 JX8 has 26 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
May 27, 2023 15,163,477 8.527
May 9, 2025 4,206,652 5.138
April 15, 2027 18,730,346 8.564
May 26, 2044 29,309,030 11.730
May 22, 2046 4,274,797 6.057
April 17, 2048 11,206,563 6.651
May 28, 2067 16,196,568 8.799
May 6, 2069 4,602,583 5.151
April 15, 2071 22,202,236 9.438
May 26, 2088 25,320,523 10.805
May 21, 2090 3,742,664 5.900
April 19, 2092 10,302,820 6.356
April 15, 2094 29,911,356 11.248
May 28, 2113 20,390,970 9.716
May 17, 2115 2,723,827 5.417
April 17, 2117 15,034,162 7.623
May 26, 2138 7,467,809 6.798
April 25, 2140 7,665,715 5.704
April 17, 2142 27,216,870 10.613
May 28, 2161 20,661,294 9.743
May 19, 2163 2,616,547 5.544
April 20, 2165 11,458,476 6.707
May 29, 2186 22,506,941 10.148
May 20, 2188 2,795,914 5.707
April 22, 2190 9,780,524 6.289
April 17, 2192 27,147,117 10.599

Images and Observations

2002 JX8's orbit is determined by observations dating back to May 4, 2002. It was last officially observed on May 22, 2021. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 90 observations used to determine its orbit.

Accessibility and Exploration

2002 JX8 can be reached with a journey of 354 days. This trajectory would require a delta-v of 10.42 km/s. To put this into perspective, the delta-v to launch a rocket to Low-Earth Orbit is 9.7 km/s. There are 870 potential trajectories and launch windows to this asteroid.

See more at the NHATS Mission Trajectories table for 2002 JX8.

Similar Objects

These objects have orbits that share similar characteristics to the orbit of 2002 JX8:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460000.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.7699 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.3054
  • Inclination: 4.31°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 68.58°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 338.1°
  • Mean Anomaly: 88.75°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.391 km
  • Magnitude: 20.43

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 247 days (0.68 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 33.91 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.01 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.53 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 612356 (2002 JX8) 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 2002 JX8 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.