Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a school bus or smaller
  • Will pass within 55,640 km of Earth in 2022
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

2022 SX55 is a very small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2022 SX55 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 SX55 orbits the sun every 279 days (0.76 years), coming as close as 0.50 AU and reaching as far as 1.17 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2022 SX55 is probably between 0.002 to 0.005 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a school bus or smaller.

Close Approaches

2022 SX55's orbit is 0.00 AU from Earth's orbit at its closest point. This means that its orbit is very close to Earth's orbit.

2022 SX55 has 3 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Sept. 17, 2022 55,640 12.607
Dec. 13, 2029 28,021,887 11.631
Sept. 17, 2035 323,956 12.197

NASA Sentry has assessed impact risk for 5 very close approach scenarios. Here are the top scenarios ordered by probability of impact:

Date Probability of Impact (%) Impact Energy (Mt)
Sept. 17, 2035 0.40160 0.001208
Sept. 17, 2038 0.00154 0.001211
Sept. 17, 2037 0.00007 0.001211
Sept. 17, 2040 0.00002 0.001209
Sept. 17, 2058 0.00001 0.001212

Images and Observations

2022 SX55's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Sept. 18, 2022. It was last officially observed on Sept. 19, 2022. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 7 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 2022 SX55:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.8362 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.3983
  • Inclination: 10.92°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 354.41°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 221.02°
  • Mean Anomaly: 205.44°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.003 km
  • Magnitude: 30.19

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 279 days (0.76 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 32.61 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.17 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.50 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of 2022 SX55 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.