Norwan

Key Facts

• Categorized as a Amor-class Asteroid
• Comparable in size to the U.S. Pentagon
• Will pass within 24,650,587 km of Earth in 2049
• Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
• Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
• See orbit simulation

Overview

Norwan is a mid-sized asteroid whose orbit approaches the orbit of Earth but does not cross it. NASA JPL has classified Norwan 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.

Norwan orbits the sun every 717 days (1.96 years), coming as close as 1.07 AU and reaching as far as 2.07 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, Norwan is probably between 0.947 to 2.119 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, very roughly comparable in size to the U.S. Pentagon.

The rotation of Norwan has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 35.90 hours.

Norwan's spectral type None (Tholen) / S (SMASSII) indicates that it is likely to contain and .

Close Approaches

Norwan's orbit is 0.16 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.

Norwan has 3 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Images and Observations

Norwan's orbit is determined by observations dating back to May 1, 1982. It was last officially observed on June 24, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 1,202 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 Norwan:

• 3199 Nefertiti (1982 RA)
• 3800 Karayusuf (1984 AB)
• 4957 Brucemurray (1990 XJ)

References

• JPL Small Body Database
• Mission Design
• Sky Finder Chart

Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of Norwan 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 Norwan 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.