2022 AP7
Discovery[1]
Discovered byS. S. Sheppard
Discovery siteCerro Tololo Observatory
Discovery date13 January 2022
Designations
2022 AP7
NEO · Apollo · PHA[2]
Orbital characteristics[3]
Epoch 9 August 2022 (JD 2459800.5)
Uncertainty parameter 1
Observation arc4.86 yr (1,774 days)
Earliest precovery date20 December 2017
Aphelion5.015 AU
Perihelion0.833 AU
2.924 AU
Eccentricity0.7151
5.00 yr[3]
25.857°
0° 11m 49.647s / day
Inclination13.835°
192.377°
30 March 2022
113.590°
Earth MOID0.04716 AU (7,055,000 km; 18.35 LD)
Mars MOID0.07344 AU (10,986,000 km; 28.58 LD)[2]
Jupiter MOID1.19258 AU (178.407 Gm)
Physical characteristics
Mean diameter
1.1–2.3 km[4][a]
1.2 km[5][b]
17.1±0.2[4][3]
17.3 (MPC)[2]

2022 AP7 is a kilometer-sized Apollo asteroid and potentially hazardous object orbiting between Venus and Jupiter. It was discovered on 13 January 2022 by Scott Sheppard at Cerro Tololo Observatory.[1] Based on its absolute magnitude (H), 2022 AP7 is likely the largest potentially hazardous object identified in the eight years prior to its 2022 discovery.[4][c]

Discovery

2022 AP7 was discovered as part of Sheppard's twilight survey for near-Earth asteroids interior to Earth and Venus, using Cerro Tololo Observatory's Dark Energy Camera.[1] Notable discoveries from this survey include the Atira asteroids 2021 LJ4 and 2021 PH27, the latter of which holds the record for the shortest orbital period of any known asteroid as of 2022.[4]

Orbit and classification

2022 AP7 is considered "potentially hazardous" only because of its large size and low Earth minimum orbit intersection distance (MOID) just within 0.05 AU (7.5 million km; 19 LD).[3][4] However, the asteroid does not currently make notable close approaches to Earth because it is in a 1:5 near orbital resonance with Earth,[8] which means it nearly takes exactly 5.0 years to orbit the Sun in a highly elliptical orbit.[3] This resonance regularly puts it in positions where observational conditions are unfavorable; the asteroid is obscured by the Sun's glare when it becomes brightest near perihelion at low solar elongations and can be fainter at opposition when it is farther from Earth.[4] As a result, 2022 AP7 could only be efficiently searched at twilight when at its brightest; the asteroid was 45 degrees from the Sun and 1.9 AU from Earth when it was discovered.[4][9] The asteroid made its closest approach 1.5 AU from Earth in March 2022. The asteroid will not come this close to Earth again until March 2027.[10] By May 2022, when the asteroid was 1 AU from the Sun and near the ecliptic, Earth was on the other side of the Sun, 1.9 AU from the asteroid.[11]

The asteroid is not risk listed. 2022 AP7's orbit is well-determined and will guarantee only distant approaches beyond 1.1 AU (160 million km; 430 LD) of Jupiter over the next 146 years.[3][8] The asteroid will also pass 0.16 AU (24 million km; 62 LD) from Mars on 9 May 2107.[12] Nominally the asteroid will not approach 1 AU from Earth until April 2332.[13] Over the next several centuries if not thousands of years, repeated perturbations by these encounters will eventually break the 1:5 near orbital resonance of 2022 AP7, potentially leading to an impact with Earth.[14]

2022 AP7 Closest Approaches 2022–2150
(Earth has the farthest approach)
Object Date Nearest approach (AU)
Mars 2107-05-09 0.16 AU (24 million km; 62 LD)[12]
Venus 2147-04-22 0.23 AU (34 million km; 90 LD)[15]
Mercury 2062-03-07 0.44 AU (66 million km; 170 LD)[16]
Sun 2057-03-26 0.82 AU (123 million km; 320 LD)[17]
Jupiter 2109-09-30 1.19 AU (178 million km; 460 LD)[3]
Earth 2052-03-12 1.37 AU (205 million km; 530 LD)[18]

Notes

  1. ^ Diameter range based on absolute magnitude of 17.1 and assumed albedo range of 0.20 to 0.05.
  2. ^ An absolute magnitude of 17.3 and assumed albedo of 0.14 gives a diameter of 1,231 m (1.231 km) (or ≈1.2 km after rounding). PHAs brighter than absolute magnitude 17.75 are likely larger than 1 km in size.
  3. ^ 2014 LJ21 was discovered on 5 June 2014 and has an absolute magnitude of 16.05[6] with an estimated diameter of ≈2.2 km. Another potentially hazardous asteroid similar in size to 2022 AP7 is 2022 RX3 (absolute magnitude of 17.64)[7] estimated to be ≈1.1 km in diameter.

References

  1. ^ a b c "MPEC 2022-B21 : 2022 AP7". IAU Minor Planet Center. 23 January 2022. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
  2. ^ a b c 2022 AP7 at Minor Planet Center, retrieved 31 October 2022
  3. ^ a b c d e f g "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: (2022 AP7)". Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Sheppard et al. 2022.
  5. ^ "ESA Summary: 2022AP7". European Space Agency. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
  6. ^ 2014 LJ21 at Minor Planet Center, accessed 31 October 2022
  7. ^ 2022 RX3 at Minor Planet Center, accessed 1 November 2022
  8. ^ a b USA Today 2022.
  9. ^ "Horizons Batch for January 2022 Range and Solar Elongation". JPL Horizons. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
  10. ^ "Horizons Batch for 2022 to 2055". JPL Horizons. Retrieved 31 October 2022. (text search: "n.a. 1.4")
  11. ^ "Horizons Batch for 1au at ecliptic". JPL Horizons. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
  12. ^ a b "Horizons Batch for Mars 2107". JPL Horizons. Archived from the original on 3 November 2022. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
  13. ^ "Horizons Batch for Earth 2332". JPL Horizons. Archived from the original on 4 November 2022. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
  14. ^ NYT 2022.
  15. ^ "Horizons Batch for Venus 2147". JPL Horizons. Archived from the original on 4 November 2022. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
  16. ^ "Horizons Batch for Mercury 2062". JPL Horizons. Archived from the original on 4 November 2022. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
  17. ^ "Horizons Batch for Sun 2057 (Perihelion)". JPL Horizons. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
  18. ^ "Horizons Batch for Earth 2052". JPL Horizons. Archived from the original on 4 November 2022. Retrieved 4 November 2022.

Sources

External links

2022 in space
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