Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a school bus or smaller
  • Will pass within 3,905,960 km of Earth in 2022
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2022 AN5 is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2022 AN5 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.

2022 AN5 orbits the sun every 436 days (1.19 years), coming as close as 0.90 AU and reaching as far as 1.35 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2022 AN5 is probably between 0.011 to 0.047 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a school bus or smaller.

Close Approaches

2022 AN5's orbit is 0.01 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.

2022 AN5 has 2 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Jan. 28, 2022 3,905,960 4.914
Jan. 10, 2028 27,789,678 10.984

Images and Observations

2022 AN5's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Jan. 9, 2022. It was last officially observed on Jan. 25, 2022. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 24 observations used to determine its orbit.

Accessibility and Exploration

2022 AN5 can be reached with a journey of 346 days. This trajectory would require a delta-v of 7.208 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 94,217 potential trajectories and launch windows to this asteroid.

See more at the NHATS Mission Trajectories table for 2022 AN5.

Similar Objects

These objects have orbits that share similar characteristics to the orbit of 2022 AN5:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.125 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.1984
  • Inclination: 3.44°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 134.15°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 48.6°
  • Mean Anomaly: 90.79°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.029 km
  • Magnitude: 26.08

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 436 days (1.19 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 28.07 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.35 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.90 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of 2022 AN5 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 2022 AN5 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.