Discovery date 20 September 2006 Observation arc 12.01 yr (4387 days) Inclination 2.51896° Asteroid group Apollo asteroid | Alternative names none Discovered 20 September 2006 Argument of perihelion 198.959° Discoverer Spacewatch | |
Discovered by Spacewatch 0.9m telescope Minor planet category Apollo asteroid,
Earth-crosser asteroid
Mars-crosser asteroid Aphelion 1.85346 AU (277.274 Gm) Discovery site Kitt Peak National Observatory Similar Solar System, 2007 VK184, (35396) 1997 XF11, 2007 TU24, (367789) 2011 AG5 | ||
(292220) 2006 SU49 (also written 2006 SU49) is a near-Earth asteroid that had a 1 in 42,000 chance of impacting Earth on January 22, 2029. By October 29, 2006, it was listed with a Torino Scale impact risk value of 0. It was removed from the Sentry Risk Table on November 23, 2006. It is now known that on January 28, 2029, the asteroid will be 0.00818 AU (1,224,000 km; 760,000 mi) from Earth.
It is a near-Earth asteroid that received minor attention in late September and early October 2006 because initial observations indicated a higher than usual probability that it would strike the Earth in 2029. However, the Near-Earth Object (NEO) Office at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) removed (292220) 2006 SU49 from its risk list as additional observations provided improved predictions that eliminated the possibility of an impact on Earth or the Moon through 2106. Similarly, NEODyS estimates show a zero impact probability through 2080.
(292220) 2006 SU49 briefly led the Earth-impact hazard list from September 27, 2006, through October 4, 2006, temporarily displacing (144898) 2004 VD17 from the number one position. At the time, both held a Torino scale of level 1 and were the only asteroids to hold a Torino value greater than 0.
Even though (292220) 2006 SU49 has an Earth MOID of 0.0003 AU (45,000 km; 28,000 mi), the orbit and future close approaches are well determined with an orbital uncertainty of 0.
(292220) 2006 SU49 was discovered on September 20, 2006, by the Spacewatch project at the University of Arizona. The object is estimated at 380 meters in diameter with a mass of about 7.3×1010 kg.