6455 (1992 HE)

Key Facts

• Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
• Comparable in size to the San Francisco Bay (4.63 km diameter)
• Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
• Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
• See orbit simulation

Overview

6455 (1992 HE) is a mid-sized asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 1992 HE as a "Near Earth Asteroid" due to its orbit's proximity to Earth, but it is not considered potentially hazardous because computer simulations have not indicated any imminent likelihood of future collision.

1992 HE orbits the sun every 1,220 days (3.34 years), coming as close as 0.96 AU and reaching as far as 3.52 AU from the sun. 1992 HE is about 4.6 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the San Francisco Bay.

The rotation of 1992 HE has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 2.74 hours.

1992 HE's spectral type None (Tholen) / S (SMASSII) indicates that it is likely to contain and .

No Close Approaches

1992 HE's orbit is 0.29 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.

Orbital simulations conducted by NASA JPL's CNEOS do not show any close approaches to Earth.

Images and Observations

1992 HE's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Sept. 29, 1989. It was last officially observed on Feb. 19, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 4,612 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 1992 HE:

• 315 Constantia (A891 RB)
• 525 Adelaide (A908 UJ)
• 685 Hermia (A909 PC)

References

• JPL Small Body Database
• Mission Design
• Sky Finder Chart

Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of 6455 (1992 HE) 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 above comparison is an artistic rendering that uses available data on the diameter of 1992 HE to create an approximate landscape rendering with Mount Everest in the background. This approximation is built for full-resolution desktop browsers. Shape, color, and texture of asteroid are imagined.