6344 P-L

Very small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 6344 P-L

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to a football field
  • Will pass within 10,392,770 km of Earth in 2040
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

6344 P-L is a very small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 6344 P-L as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

6344 P-L orbits the sun every 1,730 days (4.74 years), coming as close as 0.95 AU and reaching as far as 4.69 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 6344 P-L is probably between 0.221 to 0.494 kilometers in diameter, making it a small to average asteroid, very roughly comparable in size to a football field.

Close Approaches

6344 P-L's orbit is 0.04 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.

6344 P-L has 4 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
Nov. 9, 2040 10,392,770 9.580
Dec. 21, 2059 13,747,676 11.310
Jan. 3, 2127 24,988,765 14.486
Oct. 8, 2183 10,675,655 13.691

Images and Observations

6344 P-L's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Sept. 24, 1960. It was last officially observed on Aug. 4, 2021. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 128 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 6344 P-L:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 2.821 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.6618
  • Inclination: 4.68°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 182.81°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 234.97°
  • Mean Anomaly: 130.25°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.285 km
  • Magnitude: 20.4

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 1,730 days (4.74 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 17.74 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 4.69 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.95 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 6344 P-L 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 6344 P-L 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.