65690 (1991 DG)

Small Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 65690 (1991 DG)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the Golden Gate Bridge
  • Will pass within 12,643,382 km of Earth in 2020
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

65690 (1991 DG) is a small asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 1991 DG as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

1991 DG orbits the sun every 623 days (1.71 years), coming as close as 0.91 AU and reaching as far as 1.95 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 1991 DG is probably between 0.410 to 0.916 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.

The rotation of 1991 DG has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 7.11 hours.

Close Approaches

1991 DG'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.

1991 DG has 11 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
April 6, 2020 12,643,382 8.883
Aug. 1, 2037 25,553,340 10.483
April 10, 2049 16,605,869 8.314
Aug. 6, 2066 29,348,593 12.590
May 12, 2078 28,262,868 7.752
March 23, 2090 16,714,672 13.279
March 28, 2119 9,235,718 11.776
March 22, 2148 22,246,093 14.296
April 21, 2165 22,067,808 7.760
Aug. 4, 2182 25,138,945 10.734
April 7, 2194 12,009,438 9.035

Images and Observations

1991 DG's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Feb. 20, 1991. It was last officially observed on Dec. 20, 2022. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 1,172 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 1991 DG:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.428 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.3633
  • Inclination: 11.14°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 180.12°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 63.31°
  • Mean Anomaly: 341.27°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.529 km
  • Magnitude: 19.06

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 623 days (1.71 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 24.94 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.95 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.91 AU
  • Rotation Period: 7.11 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 65690 (1991 DG) 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 1991 DG 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.