List of asteroid close approaches to Earth in 2009
| Asteroids which came closer to Earth than the Moon in 2009 by time of discovery |
Below is the list of asteroid close approaches to Earth in 2009.
Timeline of close approaches less than one lunar distance from Earth in 2009
A list of known near-Earth asteroid close approaches less than 1 lunar distance from Earth in 2009, based on the close approach database of the Center for Near-Earth Object Studies.The CNEOS database of close approaches lists some close approaches a full orbit or more before the discovery of the object, derived by orbit calculation. The list below only includes close approaches that are evidenced by observations, thus the pre-discovery close approaches would only be included if the object was found by precovery, but there was no such close approach in 2009.
This list and the relevant databases do not consider impacts as close approaches, thus this list does not include any of the objects that collided with Earth's atmosphere in 2009, none of which were discovered in advance, but were observed visually or recorded by sensors designed to detect detonation of nuclear devices.
| Date of closest approach | Date discovered | Object | Nominal geocentric distance | Nominal geocentric distance | Size | Closer approach to Moon | Refs | |
| 2009-02-02 | 2009-02-04 | 0.49 | 7.3–16 | 27.8 | ||||
| 2009-02-27 | 2009-03-03 | 0.16 | 5.6–12 | 28.4 | ||||
| 2009-03-02 | 2009-02-27 | 0.19 | 18–41 | 25.8 | ||||
| 2009-03-06 | 2009-03-02 | 0.88 | 14–31 | 26.4 | ||||
| 2009-03-18 | 2009-03-17 | 0.22 | 13–28 | 26.6 | ||||
| 2009-03-19 | 2009-03-17 | 0.98 | 5.8–13 | 28.3 | Yes | |||
| 2009-05-05 | 2009-05-04 | 0.76 | 7.6–17 | 27.7 | Yes | |||
| 2009-05-13 | 2009-05-12 | 0.69 | 17–38 | 26.0 | ||||
| 2009-06-01 | 2009-05-31 | 0.74 | 12–27 | 26.7 | Yes | |||
| 2009-10-01 | 2009-10-02 | 0.18 | 3.8–8.6 | 29.2 | ||||
| 2009-10-05 | 2009-10-09 | 0.67 | 7.7–17 | 27.7 | ||||
| 2009-10-08 | 2009-10-10 | 0.79 | 9.2–21 | 27.3 | ||||
| 2009-10-17 | 2009-10-15 | 0.90 | 5.6–12 | 28.4 | ||||
| 2009-11-06 | 2009-11-06 | 0.05 | 5.1–11 | 28.6 | ||||
| 2009-11-12 | 2009-11-10 | 0.68 | 6.5–14 | 28.1 | Yes? | |||
| 2009-11-15 | 2009-11-18 | 0.69 | 12–26 | 26.8 | ||||
| 2009-11-16 | 2009-11-18 | 0.91 | 3.8–8.6 | 29.2 | ||||
| 2009-11-20 | 2009-11-19 | 0.46 | 8.8–20 | 27.4 | ||||
| 2009-11-24 | 2009-11-23 | 0.39 | 10–23 | 27.1 |
Warning times by size
This table visualizes the warning times of the close approaches listed in the above table, depending on the size of the asteroid. The sizes of each pie chart show the relative sizes of the asteroids to scale. For comparison, the approximate size of a person is also shown. This is based around the absolute magnitude of each asteroid, an approximate measure of size based on brightness.Absolute magnitude H ≥ 30
None
Absolute magnitude 30 > H ≥ 29
Absolute magnitude 28-29
Absolute magnitude 28 > H ≥ 27
Absolute magnitude 27 > H ≥ 26
Absolute magnitude 26 > H ≥ 25
Absolute magnitude 25 > H
None
Additional examples
An example list of near-Earth asteroids that passed more than 1 lunar distance from Earth in 2009.- passed 11.33 Lunar distances from Earth on 17 January 2009.
- passed 4.39 Lunar distances from Earth on 18 February 2009.
- passed 2.82 Lunar distances from Earth on 17 March 2009.
- passed 1.22 Lunar distances from Earth on 20 March 2009.
- (410777) 2009 FD passed 1.62 Lunar distances from Earth on 27 March 2009.
- (136617) 1994 CC passed 6.55 Lunar distances from Earth on 10 June 2009.
- 2009 MU passed 2.31 Lunar distances from Earth on 24 June 2009.
- passed 1.94 Lunar distances from Earth on 11 September 2009.
- may have passed as close as 1.01 Lunar distances from Earth on 14 September 2009, but the nominal orbit suggests an approach nearer to 2.40 LD.
- passed 9.79 Lunar distances from Earth on 8 October 2009.
- passed 29.68 Lunar distances from Earth on 20 October 2009.
- passed 2.91 Lunar distances from Earth on 1 December 2009.