Asteroid 2025 YQ2 flew past Earth at 0.68 LD on December 19, 2025
Asteroid 2025 YQ2, a near-Earth object, flew past Earth at a minimum distance of 0.68 lunar distances (LD), corresponding to 0.00174 AU or approximately 261 000 km (162 160 miles) from the planet’s center at 06:14 UTC on December 19, 2025. The asteroid’s relative velocity at closest approach was 6.03 km/s.
The estimated size of asteroid 2025 YQ2, based on its absolute magnitude (H=29.8), is approximately 6–14 m (20–46 feet). This places it within the range of small near-Earth asteroids.
2025 YQ2 is categorized as an Aten-class asteroid. Its orbital elements include an eccentricity of 0.239 and a semi-major axis of 0.834 AU. The perihelion distance is 0.635 AU, and the orbital inclination is 2.32 degrees. This orbit is modestly eccentric and slightly inclined compared to the ecliptic plane. The asteroid follows a path around the Sun with a sidereal period of 278 days, and its aphelion distance is 1.03 AU.
No albedo or additional physical characteristics have been published for 2025 YQ2 as of this report. It is not classified as potentially hazardous according to current observational data.
Asteroid 2025 YQ2 was first observed on December 20, 2025, and last observed on December 21, 2025, giving it an extremely short observation arc of only 1 day. The current orbital solution has a condition code of 6, indicating its trajectory is uncertain or preliminary and subject to refinement as more observations become available.
Several other recent near-Earth objects have passed within 1 lunar distance of Earth. The largest of these was asteroid 2025 XR, which passed at 0.57 LD at 16:11 UTC on December 5, 2025, and is estimated to be about 54–121 m (177–397 feet) in diameter. Other close approaches include asteroid 2025 YE2 at 0.24 LD (15:21 UTC, December 18, approximately 17–39 m / 56–128 feet), asteroid 2025 XN4 at 0.52 LD (00:55 UTC, December 16, approximately 17–39 m / 56–128 feet), and asteroid 2025 XW3 at 0.52 LD (14:00 UTC, December 14, approximately 7–15 m / 23–49 feet).