(386454) 2008 XM

(386454) 2008 XM is a highly eccentric, sub-kilometer-sized asteroid, with one of the smallest known perihelions among all minor planets. It is classified as near-Earth object of the Apollo group and was discovered on 2 December 2008, by the LINEAR program at Lincoln Laboratory's Experimental Test Site in Socorro, New Mexico, United States.^[2]

Orbit and classification

The asteroid orbits the Sun at a distance of 0.1–2.3 AU once every 16 months (494 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.91 and an inclination of 5° with respect to the ecliptic.^[1] Due to its outstanding eccentricity, it is also a Mercury-crosser, Venus-crosser and Mars-crosser.

It has the third-smallest perihelion of any numbered asteroid behind (137924) 2000 BD19 and (374158) 2004 UL.^{[citation needed]} Its Earth minimum orbital intersection distance of 0.0047 AU (700,000 km) corresponds to only 1.9 lunar distances.^[1]

According to the survey carried out by the NEOWISE mission of NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, the asteroid measures 367±9 meters in diameter and its surface has an albedo of 0.128.^[3] As of 2016, the body's composition and spectral type, as well as its rotation period and shape remains unknown.^[1]

As of 2020, this minor planet remains unnamed.^[2]

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 386454 (2008 XM)" (2014-01-29 last obs.). Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 2 June 2017.
^ ^a ^b ^c "386454 (2008 XM)". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 26 October 2016.
^ ^a ^b ^c Mainzer, A.; Bauer, J.; Grav, T.; Masiero, J.; Cutri, R. M.; Wright, E.; et al. (April 2014). "The Population of Tiny Near-Earth Objects Observed by NEOWISE". The Astrophysical Journal. 784 (2): 7. arXiv:1310.2980. Bibcode:2014ApJ...784..110M. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/784/2/110. Retrieved 26 October 2016.

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