2018 BD

2018 BD

Orbit before and after 1/18/2018 flyby
Discovery[1]
Discovered by	CSS
Discovery site	Mount Lemmon Obs.
Discovery date	18 January 2018 (first observed only)
Designations
MPC designation	2018 BD
Minor planet category	NEO · Apollo[1][2]
Orbital characteristics[2]
Epoch 23 March 2018 (JD 2458200.5)
Uncertainty parameter 7
Observation arc	1 day
Aphelion	1.3555 AU
Perihelion	0.7508 AU
Semi-major axis	1.0531 AU
Eccentricity	0.2871
Orbital period (sidereal)	1.08 yr (395 days)
Mean anomaly	357.05°
Mean motion	0° 54m 43.2s / day
Inclination	2.4082°
Longitude of ascending node	298.10°
Argument of perihelion	273.70°
Earth MOID	6.019×10−6 AU (0.00234 LD)
Physical characteristics
Mean diameter	2 m (est. at 0.35)[3] 6 m (est. at 0.05)[3]
Absolute magnitude (H)	30.154[2]

2018 BD is a small asteroid and near-Earth object of the Apollo group, approximately 2–6 meters (7–20 ft) in diameter. It was first observed on 18 January 2018, by astronomers of the Catalina Sky Survey at Mount Lemmon Observatory, Arizona, United States,^[1] just hours before passing about 0.10 lunar distances from the Earth.^[2]

2018 BD is an Apollo asteroid. It orbits the Sun at a distance of 0.75–1.36 AU once every 13 months (395 days; semi-major axis of 1.05 AU). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.29 and an inclination of 2° with respect to the ecliptic.^[2]

The object has an exceptionally low minimum orbital intersection distance with Earth of 900 km; 560 mi (0.000006019 AU), or 0.002 lunar distances.^[2]

2018 BD passing near geosynchronous orbit

The object's motion across the sky in 15 minutes intervals west to east

Based on a generic magnitude-to-diameter conversion, 2018 BD measures between 2 and 6 meters in diameter, for an absolute magnitude of 30.154, and an assumed albedo between 0.05 and 0.20, which represent typical values for carbonaceous and a bright E-type asteroids, respectively.^[3] As of 2018, no rotational light curve of this object has been obtained from photometric observations. The body's rotation period, pole and shape remain unknown.^[2]

This minor planet has neither been numbered nor named.^[1]

• List of asteroid close approaches to Earth in 2018

• Flyby diagram of 2018 BD, Minor Planet Center
• Asteroid 2018 BD missed Earth by just 0.10 LD on January 18, The Watchers, 18 January 2018
• A new asteroid was discovered just seven hours before cruising past Earth, BGR.com, 19 January 2018
• 2018 BD at NeoDyS-2, Near Earth Objects—Dynamic Site
  • Ephemerides · Observation prediction · Orbital info · MOID · Proper elements · Observational info · Close approaches · Physical info · Orbit animation
• 2018 BD at the JPL Small-Body Database
  • Close approach · Discovery · Ephemeris · Orbit viewer · Orbit parameters · Physical parameters