Key Facts
- Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
- Comparable in size to the island of Manhattan (3.40 km diameter)
- Will pass within 12,917,973 km of Earth in 2032
- Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
- Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
- See orbit simulation
Overview
Midas is a mid-sized asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified Midas as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.
Midas orbits the sun every 865 days (2.37 years), coming as close as 0.62 AU and reaching as far as 2.93 AU from the sun. Midas is about 3.4 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the island of Manhattan.
The rotation of Midas has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 5.22 hours.
Midas's spectral type None (Tholen) / V (SMASSII) indicates that it is likely to contain and .
Close Approaches
Midas'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.
Midas has 9 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:
| Date | Distance from Earth (km) | Velocity (km/s) |
|---|---|---|
| Sept. 14, 2032 | 12,917,973 | 26.418 |
| Sept. 23, 2058 | 17,940,770 | 30.665 |
| March 14, 2063 | 12,340,140 | 30.154 |
| March 20, 2089 | 10,820,251 | 26.846 |
| Sept. 14, 2103 | 20,011,791 | 25.449 |
| Sept. 20, 2129 | 7,250,581 | 28.967 |
| March 11, 2134 | 22,765,117 | 31.768 |
| March 21, 2160 | 10,795,607 | 26.846 |
| Sept. 15, 2174 | 13,770,277 | 26.269 |
Images and Observations
Midas's orbit is determined by observations dating back to March 6, 1973. It was last officially observed on Oct. 20, 2021. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 1,077 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 Midas:References
Search
or view a random objectOrbital Elements
- Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
- Semi-major axis: 1.777 AU
- Eccentricity: 0.6501
- Inclination: 39.82°
- Longitude of Ascending Node: 356.85°
- Argument of Periapsis: 267.82°
- Mean Anomaly: 92.26°
Physical Characteristics
- Diameter: 3.40000 km
- Magnitude: 15.28
- Spectral type (SMASS): V
Derived Characteristics
- Orbit Period: 865 days (2.37 years)
- Avg. Orbit Speed: 22.35 km/s
- Aphelion Distance: 2.93 AU
- Perihelion Distance: 0.62 AU
- Rotation Period: 5.22 hours
- Approx. Composition: and .
Map Comparison
Orbit Simulation
Sky Map
The position of Midas 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 Midas 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.
