89958 (2002 LY45)

Mid-sized Apollo-class Asteroid

Near-Earth Potentially Hazardous
Space Reference » Apollo-class Asteroids » 89958 (2002 LY45)

Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Apollo-class Asteroid
  • Comparable in size to the U.S. Pentagon
  • Will pass within 28,364,037 km of Earth in 2021
  • Classified as a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA)
  • Classified as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA)
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

89958 (2002 LY45) is a mid-sized asteroid whose orbit crosses the orbit of Earth. NASA JPL has classified 2002 LY45 as a "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" due to its predicted close pass(es) with Earth.

2002 LY45 orbits the sun every 768 days (2.10 years), coming as close as 0.19 AU and reaching as far as 3.10 AU from the sun. Its orbit is highly elliptical. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, 2002 LY45 is probably between 0.956 to 2.138 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, very roughly comparable in size to the U.S. Pentagon.

The rotation of 2002 LY45 has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 3.27 hours.

Close Approaches

2002 LY45'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.

2002 LY45 has 9 close approaches predicted in the coming decades:

Date Distance from Earth (km) Velocity (km/s)
June 28, 2021 28,364,037 30.384
March 25, 2032 10,298,311 30.485
April 2, 2053 15,439,018 35.618
June 29, 2082 27,678,379 30.470
March 26, 2093 11,720,037 30.234
April 3, 2114 14,174,813 35.363
June 29, 2143 25,334,392 31.623
March 26, 2154 18,255,787 29.032
April 2, 2175 9,059,877 34.282

Images and Observations

2002 LY45's orbit is determined by observations dating back to June 14, 2000. It was last officially observed on July 8, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 1,003 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 2002 LY45:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 1.642 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.8865
  • Inclination: 9.91°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 188.17°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 222.91°
  • Mean Anomaly: 358.71°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: ~1.234 km
  • Magnitude: 17.22

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 768 days (2.10 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 23.26 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 3.10 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 0.19 AU
  • Rotation Period: 3.27 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of 89958 (2002 LY45) 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 2002 LY45 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.