6Q0B44E


6Q0B44E, sometimes abbreviated to B44E, is a small object, probably an item of space debris, that is currently orbiting Earth outside the orbit of the Moon as of November 2018.

Discovery

6Q0B44E was first observed by Catalina Sky Survey researchers at the Lunar and Planetary Laboratory of the University of Arizona on 28 August 2006. The sighting was confirmed the next day by observations at the Siding Spring Survey and Table Mountain Observatory.

Properties

The object is just a few metres across and has been provisionally classified as artificial. 6Q0B44E orbits Earth between 585,000 and 983,000 km, which is 2 to 3 times the distance of the Moon's orbit, over a period of 80 days. Its density has been estimated at around 15 kg/m³, too low for natural rock and comparable to that expected for an empty fuel tank.
6Q0B44E was spotted at what is believed to be the brightest part of its orbit, at 19th magnitude. As the object moves away from Earth, its brightness falls on a six-month cycle down to 28th magnitude, severely limiting study of its composition.
Ephemerides calculated from the observations suggest that 6Q0B44E probably entered the Earth–Moon system between 2001–2003, although it may have arrived up to a decade earlier. Similarities between the discoveries of 6Q0B44E and J002E3, now believed to be part of the Apollo 12 rocket, have led some astronomers to speculate that 6Q0B44E may be another relic of human space exploration which has returned to Earth orbit. However, no space mission has been identified as the source of 6Q0B44E.