2000 SG344

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2000 SG344
Discovery[1]
Discovered by D. J. Tholen, and R. J. Whiteley
Discovery site Mauna Kea Observatory - UH88
Discovery date 2000-09-29
Designations
Minor planet
category		 Aten
Epoch 2454600.5
Aphelion 1.04286173 ± 7.4785e-07 AU
Perihelion .9119995 ± 4.3409e-06 AU
Semi-major axis .97743066 ± 7.0093e-07 AU
Eccentricity .0669419 ± 3.7724e-06
Orbital period 352.9615239 ± 0.00037967 d
Mean anomaly 228.373742 ± 0.0031236°
Inclination .1103173 ± 8.2267e-06°
Longitude of ascending node 192.301028 ± 0.0015524°
Argument of perihelion 274.922907 ± 0.00164°
Physical characteristics
Dimensions 37 m[3]
Mass 7.1×107 kg[3]
Absolute magnitude 24.788 ± 0.83657[2]
The correct title of this article is 2000 SG344. It features superscript or subscript characters that are substituted or omitted because of technical limitations.

2000 SG344 (also written 2000 SG344) is a small Aten asteroid discovered in 1999. It has a diameter of 37 m and an estimated mass of 7.1×107 kg (71 gigagrams, approximately 3 times the mass of the RMS Titanic).[3] The object could also be classified as a meteoroid, although the most common definition uses a diameter of 10 m as the demarcation. Because of its very Earth-like orbit and the fact that it would have been near the Earth in 1971, it is thought that 2000 SG344 might actually be a man made object such as an S-IVB booster stage from a Saturn V rocket.[4][5]

Contents

[edit] Possible impacts with Earth

Until December 2004, it was considered to have the highest (though still very low) likelihood of any near-Earth object to impact Earth in the next 100 years. It is ranked a zero on the Torino Scale of impact risk (the scale is 0–10).[6][3] It was briefly surpassed in December 2004 by 99942 Apophis (which at the time was known only by its provisional designation 2004 MN4).

Based on 31 observations of 2000 SG344 made from May, 1999 to October, 2000, there is about a 1 in 556 chance that it will collide with Earth between 2068 and 2101. If that happens, the energy released by the impact would be an estimated 1.1 megatons of TNT.[3]

[edit] Planned NASA mission

NASA is considering it as a possible target for a manned mission, using the Orion spacecraft, prior to a projected 2030 push to Mars.[7]

[edit] Further reading

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ "IAU Circular: MPEC 2000-U19" (2000-10-24). 
  2. ^ a b JPL Small-Body Database Browser on 2000 SG344.
  3. ^ a b c d e 2000 SG344 Earth Impact Risk Summary (2002-05-15). Retrieved on 2004-11-12.
  4. ^ "Much Ado about 2000 SG344", NASA, 2000-11-07. 
  5. ^ Chodas, P. W.; Chesley, S. R. (November 2001). "2000 SG344: The Story of a Potential Earth Impactor". Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society 33. 
  6. ^ NASA Near Earth Object Program: Current Impact Risks. Retrieved on 2004-11-12.
  7. ^ Sample, Ian. "Closer encounter: Nasa plans landing on 40m-wide asteroid travelling at 28,000mph", The Guardian, 2008-05-07. 
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Small Solar System bodies
Lists: Minor planets · Asteroid groups and families · Binary asteroids · Asteroid moons
See also: Near-Earth object · Dwarf planet · Planet · Solar System · Pronunciation of asteroid names · Meanings of asteroid names.


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