68347 (2001 KB67)

Very small Aten-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Aten-class Asteroids » 68347 (2001 KB67)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Aten-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the U.S. Capitol building
  • Will pass within 20,534,300 km of Earth in 2035
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

68347 (2001 KB67) is a very small asteroid whose orbit could bring it in close proximity to Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2001 KB67 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2001 KB67 orbits the sun every 345 days (0.94 years), coming as close as 0.60 AU and reaching as far as 1.33 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2001 KB67 is probably between 0.276 to 0.617 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 90% of asteroids but tiny compared to large asteroids, very roughly comparable in size to the U.S. Capitol building.

The rotation of 2001 KB67 has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 6.35 hours.

Close Approaches

2001 KB67'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.

2001 KB67 has 13 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
May 27, 2035 20,534,300 10.940
Oct. 25, 2038 29,746,130 14.190
May 30, 2051 3,321,976 14.175
May 27, 2068 10,426,993 12.263
June 2, 2084 17,798,087 16.753
May 29, 2101 6,184,241 12.928
June 2, 2117 12,923,558 15.904
May 29, 2134 8,319,707 12.600
June 6, 2150 26,563,914 18.345
May 29, 2151 23,883,801 10.584
Oct. 26, 2154 29,555,000 14.245
June 4, 2167 17,176,295 16.653
June 2, 2184 11,381,700 15.631

Images and Observations

2001 KB67's orbit is determined by observations dating back to May 30, 2001. It was last officially observed on Oct. 16, 2021. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 614 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 2001 KB67:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 0.9621 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.3801
  • Inclination: 17.12°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 245.86°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 243.78°
  • Mean Anomaly: 294.35°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~0.356 km
  • Magnitude: 19.92

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 345 days (0.94 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 30.34 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 1.33 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.60 AU
  • Rotation Period: 6.35 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 68347 (2001 KB67) 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 2001 KB67 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.