Asteroid 2012 DA14 & Chelyabinsk Impactor

× Note: Chrome no longer supports Java applets, so you'll need to use a browser such as Firefox, Internet Explorer or Safari to run the orbit applet. Also, make sure you have Java installed and enabled on your web browser to view the applet. This applet is provided as a 3D orbit visualization tool.

Orbit Viewer

This 3D interactive program that shows the orbit of the meteor which appeared over Chelyabinsk, Russia on February 15, 2013, and the orbit of Asteroid 2012 DA14 which flew very close to the Earth on the same day. Asteroid 2012 DA14’s orbit is shown in blue and the meteor’s orbit in red.

For best viewing, select Earth as the Center object, change the time increment to 1 Hour, and zoom in. Then step through the animation, hitting the >| key. You can use the two sliders underneath and to the right of the image to adjust your viewing angle.

Custom Orbit Viewer applet provided by Ron Baalke (JPL).