292220 (2006 SU49)

Small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 292220 (2006 SU49)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the Golden Gate Bridge
  • Will pass within 26,452,111 km of Earth in 2023
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

292220 (2006 SU49) is a small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2006 SU49 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2006 SU49 orbits the sun every 613 days (1.68 years), coming as close as 0.97 AU and reaching as far as 1.85 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2006 SU49 is probably between 0.219 to 0.979 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than ~97% of asteroids but small compared to large asteroids, very roughly comparable in size to the Golden Gate Bridge.

Close Approaches

2006 SU49'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.

2006 SU49 has 10 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Dec. 28, 2023 26,452,111 10.597
Jan. 28, 2029 1,225,404 4.904
Feb. 6, 2051 2,652,165 4.695
Dec. 28, 2067 23,437,792 10.018
March 13, 2090 5,839,752 5.689
March 23, 2107 10,899,766 7.007
Jan. 8, 2136 9,908,924 7.139
Jan. 9, 2153 8,623,384 6.881
April 1, 2175 19,880,825 9.071
Feb. 28, 2192 3,862,704 4.822

Images and Observations

2006 SU49's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Oct. 19, 2001. It was last officially observed on Sept. 27, 2021. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 290 observations used to determine its orbit.

Accessibility and Exploration

2006 SU49 can be reached with a journey of 370 days. This trajectory would require a delta-v of 9.285 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 4,580 potential trajectories and launch windows to this asteroid.

See more at the NHATS Mission Trajectories table for 2006 SU49.

Similar Objects

These objects have orbits that share similar characteristics to the orbit of 2006 SU49:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.413 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.312
  • Inclination: 2.52°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 303.09°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 199.05°
  • Mean Anomaly: 278.91°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.599 km
  • Magnitude: 19.5

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 613 days (1.68 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 25.08 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.85 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.97 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 292220 (2006 SU49) 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 2006 SU49 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.