614134 (2008 TC4)

Very small Aten-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Aten-class Asteroids » 614134 (2008 TC4)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a basketball court
  • Will pass within 29,836,216 km of Earth in 2021
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

614134 (2008 TC4) is a very small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2008 TC4 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2008 TC4 orbits the sun every 252 days (0.69 years), coming as close as 0.35 AU and reaching as far as 1.21 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2008 TC4 is probably between 0.124 to 0.278 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a basketball court.

Close Approaches

2008 TC4's orbit is 0.00 AU from Earth's orbit at its closest point. This means that its orbit is relatively close to Earth's orbit.

2008 TC4 has 35 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Aug. 24, 2021 29,836,216 12.407
Oct. 23, 2028 10,486,869 13.590
Aug. 17, 2032 26,916,399 16.059
Oct. 23, 2037 19,088,030 19.248
Oct. 10, 2039 29,132,262 12.140
Oct. 24, 2048 6,935,833 14.148
Aug. 17, 2052 26,448,686 15.558
Oct. 23, 2057 19,940,903 19.448
Oct. 10, 2059 28,932,489 12.145
Oct. 23, 2068 9,708,271 13.716
Aug. 18, 2072 27,313,083 16.365
Oct. 24, 2077 14,707,546 18.322
Aug. 24, 2081 29,587,885 12.463
Oct. 21, 2088 15,595,532 12.910
Aug. 18, 2092 29,919,573 17.760
Oct. 25, 2097 7,985,227 16.950
Aug. 22, 2101 27,841,405 13.007
Oct. 21, 2108 18,378,702 12.621
Oct. 26, 2117 6,872,712 16.726
Aug. 22, 2121 27,895,054 12.975
Oct. 22, 2128 15,729,903 12.909
Aug. 19, 2132 29,119,092 17.409
Oct. 25, 2137 12,395,261 17.830
Aug. 25, 2141 29,563,397 12.471
Oct. 24, 2148 11,237,070 13.464
Aug. 19, 2152 27,242,265 16.315
Oct. 24, 2157 17,986,058 19.018
Oct. 11, 2159 29,342,887 12.161
Oct. 25, 2168 6,596,032 14.207
Aug. 19, 2172 26,419,082 15.563
Oct. 24, 2177 20,008,149 19.432
Oct. 11, 2179 28,735,663 12.139
Oct. 25, 2188 8,588,620 13.869
Aug. 19, 2192 26,983,437 16.117
Oct. 25, 2197 15,404,909 18.453

Images and Observations

2008 TC4's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Oct. 6, 2008. It was last officially observed on Sept. 14, 2021. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 180 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 2008 TC4:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.7803 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.5545
  • Inclination: 10.65°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 212.54°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 324.35°
  • Mean Anomaly: 108.95°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.161 km
  • Magnitude: 21.65

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 252 days (0.69 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 33.69 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.21 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.35 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 614134 (2008 TC4) 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 2008 TC4 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.