Contents on 5 April '12
- Traffic Report -- four objects
- IAU Minor Planet Center
- NEOCP Activity -- 25 listings
- New MPECs -- one MPEC
- Observers -- four observers
- Impact Risk Monitoring -- one object
- Chronology
Asteroid/Comet Connection (A/CC) Resources:
- Consolidated Risk Tables - the CRT page (archive)
Of 455 risk-listed objects, 28 have had news in the last 31 days. Updated at 1524 UTC on 5 April.
- Ephemerides for risk-rated & nearby objects + potential mission destinations
- News image catalog
- News old archive & Small Objects Archive
- Object Links - mainly for radar targets & close passers - updated 28 March
- Observing Campaigns
The latest A/CC news is available via framed access, 
RSS news feed, or redirection. - Note: A/CC has a main Web site and also a backup site with its own duplicate RSS news feed.
Navigation tips: Use the << and >> arrows on the menus for each regular section (Observers, Risks, etc.) to move to the previous and next day's news for that section. Use the Index menu item to access specific days through a calendar interface. And use the all-up news archive to access news from any time since A/CC began in early 2002. To keep track of what's new each day, watch the Chronology section.
Traffic Report on 5 April '12
Four objects reported inside ten LD
There are four asteroids reported moving inside ten lunar distances (LD) of our planet today. Within Earth's Hill sphere, risk-listed 2012 FA57 is outbound from 1.16 to 2.53 LD. Further away, 2012 FH58 moves outward from 4.37 to 5.87 LD, radar target intruder 2012 EG5 from 6.81 to 8.68 LD, and intruder 2012 FS35 from 7.24 to 8.00 LD.
Approaching our neighborhood, risk-listed 2012 GD arrives inside ten LD on April 8th and returning 2007 HV4 on April 14th.
This report was posted at 1525 UTC with follow-up in today's DOU MPEC for 2012 EG5.
Notes: Ten times the distance to the Moon (ten LD) has no astronomical significance but is a useful reporting boundary. Earth's Hill sphere (of gravitational influence) is estimated to extend out to around 3.89 LD. Object distances are interpreted by A/CC from JPL Horizons data. See also current sky chart and object details (alt-details), ephemerides, and today's timeline.
NEOCP Activity on 5 April '12
The MPC's NEO Confirmation Page has 25 listings
When last checked at 2359 UTC today, the Minor Planet Center's Near Earth Object discovery Confirmation Page (NEOCP) had 25 objects listed. Of these, four were "one nighters."
To learn how observers use the NEOCP, see the Practical guide on how to observe NEOCP object at Suno Observatory by Birtwhistle et al.
New MPECs on 5 April '12
Minor Planet Electronic Circulars
As of last check at 2359 UTC, there has been one MPEC posted today from the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
<< DOU on 5 Apr. '12 >> MPEC 2012-G22 - "06:03 UT" - Daily Orbit Update
- Observations of recently (no longer) risk-listed objects
- K12E05G 2012 EG5 (small asteroid, arc=21 days, H=24.3 ~47m, close passer, radar support) from Los Molinos Obs. (March 30.12-14p4)
- Observations of other asteroidal objects
- K12F62O 2012 FO62 (arc=7 days, H=20.2 ~309m) from Robert Holmes via Cerro Tololo Inter-American Obs. (CTIO) (April 4.27-28p3)
- A0926 100926 1998 MQ from Pan-STARRS 1 (PS1) (April 4.48-51p3)
- 24475 24475 2000 VN2 from Bisei Spaceguard Center (April 4.76-77p4)
Observers on 5 April '12
Four observers appear in today's MPEC.
| Code | Observer / observatory |
|---|---|
| 300 | Bisei Spaceguard Center in Japan, 1 in MPEC 2012-G22 -- 24475 |
| 807| | Robert Holmes in Illinois via Cerro Tololo Inter-American Obs. in Chile, 1 in MPEC 2012-G22 -- 2012 FO62 |
| 844 | Los Molinos Obs. in Uruguay, 1 in MPEC 2012-G22 -- 2012 EG5 |
| F51 | Pan-STARRS 1 in Hawaii, 1 in MPEC 2012-G22 -- 100926 |
| For a list of all participating observatories that have Web addresses, see A/CC's Observatory Links page. | |
Impact Risk Monitoring on 5 April '12
| 0000NNN000 Object | Risk Monitor | When Noted UTC | 0000T0000 Year Range | VI # | 000NN00 Prob Cum | T0000 PS Cum | T0000 PS Max | T S | Notes for Today's Latest Risk Assessments |
| 2012 GK | NEODyS | 1524 | 2019-2090 | 73 | 1.26e-06 | -4.62 | -5.07 | 0 | NEODyS: "Based on 12 optical observations (of which 0 are rejected as outliers) from 2012-04-02.360 to 2012-04-04.506." |
Legend: VI# = VI count, Prob Cum = cumulative probability, PS Cum/Max = cumulative/maximum Palermo Scale, TS = Torino Scale
An impact solution, also known as a "virtual impactor" (VI), is not a prediction but rather a possibility derived from a variant orbit calculation that cannot be eliminated yet based on the existing data. Elimination can come quickly with just a little further observation or may take weeks or months, sometimes years. Once superceded or eliminated, a former impact solution has zero relevance to an object's risk. See Jon Giorgini's "Understanding Risk Pages" to learn more.
Chronology on 5 April '12
Times are UTC for when items were noted or added by The Tracking News.
| 1525 | Posted Traffic Report |
| 1524 | Noted that NEODyS has posted 2012 GK as an impact risk - see above Grabbed MPEC 2012-G22 - Daily Orbit Update - see above |
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