Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...
to within 40 Gm three times in the 21st century: 33 Gm in 2039, 40 Gm in 2070, and 24 Gm in 2085.
On 2012-Sep-20 it passed from the Earth at
apparent magnitude
Apparent magnitude () is a measure of the brightness of a star or other astronomical object observed from Earth. An object's apparent magnitude depends on its intrinsic luminosity, its distance from Earth, and any extinction of the object's ...
17.0. In
opposition
Opposition may refer to:
Arts and media
* ''Opposition'' (Altars EP), 2011 EP by Christian metalcore band Altars
* The Opposition (band), a London post-punk band
* '' The Opposition with Jordan Klepper'', a late-night television series on Com ...
on 23 November 2012, it brightened to magnitude 16.0.
It is a member of the
Alinda group
The Alinda asteroids are a dynamical group of asteroids with a semi-major axis of about 2.5 AU and an orbital eccentricity approximately between 0.4 and 0.65. As an Alinda asteroid it makes approaches to Jupiter, Earth, and Venus.
For a time, it was the lowest numbered asteroid that had not been named. In November 2006, this distinction passed to 3708 Socus, and in May 2021 to (4596) 1981 QB.