HXF-644 (Class-C) (Archive) 

^^ Craft Information - Trajectory Update - Impact Chance Unchanged ^^

This asteroid was picked up with an infrared scope operating for the Asteroid Tracking Network, it is too dark and far away for optical scopes to get a fix on it. Early plots of its orbit show a possible impact or very close pass in several years time. The asteroid's orbit relative to ours brings it near the region of the sun in the sky making it very hard to obtain observations with the infrared scope. When it passes closer to us optical scopes may be able to lend additional observations to further refine its orbit and allow us to definitively say whether it will impact Kerbin or not. Until then it will remain under close observation.

A Class-C object, its mass has recently been pinned down to 110.679 tonnes

Further observations have allowed astronomers to refine its orbit accurately enough to predict its trajectory several years out with a great deal of accuracy. What they have found is a very high risk of impact in 2025. Because this event is several years off, measures can be taken to deflect the asteroid into a more benign orbit. The KSA is part of a task force that is looking into options for deflection, hoping to launch a mission for this purpose in 2018 or 2019. In the meantime our local asteroid Meeny could prove to be a valuable testing ground for technologies we hope to employ for HXF-644

The latest round of orbital observations by the ATN, which happen each time the asteroid completes an orbit around the sun, show no significant change to the asteroid's impact trajectory

Discovered: 1/21/15 @ 08:32:25 UTC
Avg Velocity: 9.504km/s
Periapsis: 12,135,742.573km
Apoapsis: 13,358,575.446km
Eccentricity: 0.047000
Inclination: 0.043°
Orbital Period: 8,610,100.35s
Resources: None
Last Update: 10/23/15 @ 17:28 UTC
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