When does Apophis pass Earth?
Apophis: closest approach April 2029
Apophis passes Earth on April 13, 2029 at 21:45 UTC, 38,011 km from Earth's centre (0.10 lunar distances). That is closer than the geostationary satellites (35,793 km up), and well inside the Moon's distance.
Distance through the flyby
lunar distances, ±12 h (JPL Horizons)Can you see it?
JPL Horizons gives a brightest apparent magnitude of 3.1 as seen from Earth's centre, at 20:36 UTC on Apr 13, 2029: bright enough to see with the naked eye from a dark site. At closest approach it is overhead at about 29°N, 44°W, where the Sun is up or in twilight. Seen from the ground, its position and brightness differ from the geocentric values, the more so the closer it comes.
Impact risk
Apophis was on JPL's Sentry impact-monitoring list until 2021-02-21, when further observations ruled out any impact in the period Sentry covers (about 100 years).
Physical data
| Absolute magnitude H | 19.09 |
| Diameter | 340 m |
| Geometric albedo | 0.35 |
| Rotation period | 30.56 h |
| Orbit class | Aten |
| Potentially hazardous asteroid (PHA) | yes |
JPL Small-Body Database: 99942 Apophis (2004 MN4).
Every close approach, 1900–2200
All passes within 0.2 au (78 lunar distances) computed by JPL. None comes closer than the 2029 pass. The uncertainty column is JPL's 3-sigma timing uncertainty; it grows for dates far from today.
| Date | Lunar dist. | Distance | km/s | Time ± |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 13, 1907 | 11.1 | 4.28 million km | 5.1 | 00:02 |
| Nov 6, 1914 | 63.5 | 24.40 million km | 4.1 | 00:11 |
| Jan 28, 1915 | 47.5 | 18.27 million km | 4.5 | 00:09 |
| Dec 19, 1922 | 44.9 | 17.26 million km | 9.0 | < 00:01 |
| Apr 13, 1924 | 42.0 | 16.14 million km | 9.1 | < 00:01 |
| Mar 8, 1932 | 44.5 | 17.11 million km | 4.6 | 00:05 |
| Dec 18, 1939 | 23.3 | 8.95 million km | 4.8 | < 00:01 |
| Apr 14, 1949 | 10.9 | 4.18 million km | 6.7 | < 00:01 |
| Apr 1, 1957 | 29.3 | 11.28 million km | 4.3 | < 00:01 |
| Oct 24, 1964 | 73.0 | 28.08 million km | 5.2 | < 00:01 |
| Feb 11, 1965 | 49.0 | 18.82 million km | 4.7 | < 00:01 |
| Dec 24, 1972 | 30.8 | 11.85 million km | 4.1 | < 00:01 |
| Dec 18, 1980 | 28.1 | 10.79 million km | 7.4 | < 00:01 |
| Apr 11, 1982 | 69.9 | 26.86 million km | 11.2 | < 00:01 |
| Apr 14, 1990 | 12.8 | 4.93 million km | 6.8 | < 00:01 |
| Apr 14, 1998 | 9.5 | 3.65 million km | 6.6 | < 00:01 |
| Dec 21, 2004 | 37.5 | 14.42 million km | 8.2 | < 00:01 |
| Jan 9, 2013 | 37.6 | 14.46 million km | 4.1 | < 00:01 |
| Mar 6, 2021 | 43.8 | 16.85 million km | 4.6 | < 00:01 |
| Apr 13, 2029 | 0.10 | 38,011 km | 7.4 | < 00:01 |
| Aug 24, 2044 | 31.2 | 12.01 million km | 4.0 | 20:23 |
| Apr 20, 2051 | 16.1 | 6.21 million km | 4.7 | 08:07 |
| Sep 16, 2066 | 27.0 | 10.39 million km | 7.8 | 08:17 |
| Jul 27, 2073 | 43.7 | 16.80 million km | 4.6 | 1 d 14:05 |
| May 9, 2080 | 33.8 | 13.00 million km | 4.2 | 12:50 |
| Apr 7, 2087 | 37.3 | 14.33 million km | 8.7 | 03:48 |
| Sep 11, 2102 | 9.1 | 3.50 million km | 5.7 | 15:17 |
| Apr 12, 2116 | 6.8 | 2.63 million km | 6.4 | 7 d 11:21 |
Questions
Will Apophis hit Earth?
Apophis was on JPL's Sentry impact-monitoring list until 2021-02-21, when further observations ruled out any impact in the period Sentry covers (about 100 years).
How close will Apophis come?
38,011 km from Earth's centre, 31,640 km above the surface, on Apr 13, 2029 at 21:45 UTC (NASA JPL). That is closer than the geostationary satellites (35,793 km up), and well inside the Moon's distance.
How big is Apophis?
340 m (measured). Its rotation period is 30.56 hours.
Can I see Apophis?
At its brightest about magnitude 3.1 (JPL Horizons, geocentric): bright enough to see with the naked eye from a dark site.
Sources: NASA/JPL CNEOS close-approach data, Sentry, Small-Body Database and Horizons (geocentric ephemeris). Data fetched 30 Oct 2026, 00:23 UTC; refreshed weekly. Times converted from TDB to UTC.