Discovered by Pan-STARRS (F51) MPC designation 2015 BP513 Observation arc 10 days Discoverer Pan-STARRS | Discovery date 27 January 2015 Minor planet category Apollo, NEO Discovered 27 January 2015 Asteroid group Apollo asteroid | |
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Aphelion 2.5163 AU (376.43 Gm) (Q) Similar (33342) 1998 WT24, WISE J22460757‑0526350, Kepler‑440b, 22P/Kopff, 1566 Icarus | ||
2015 BP513 (also written 2015 BP513) is an Apollo near-Earth asteroid roughly 12–27 meters in diameter that passed less than 1 lunar distance from Earth on 18 January 2015.
2015 flyby
Until 18 January 2015 18:00 UT the small dim asteroid either had an elongation less than 45 degrees from the Sun or was significantly fainter than apparent magnitude 23. On 18 January 2015 13:36 UT the asteroid passed 0.00082 AU (123,000 km; 76,000 mi) from the Moon and at 17:09 UT passed 0.0016 AU (240,000 km; 150,000 mi) from Earth. The asteroid was not discovered until 9 days later on 27 January 2015 by Pan-STARRS at an apparent magnitude of 21 using a 1.8-meter (71 in) Ritchey–Chrétien telescope. Two precovery images from 19 January 2015 when the asteroid was apparent magnitude 16 were then located.