List of minor planets and comets visited by spacecraft


The following tables list all minor planets and comets that have been visited by robotic spacecraft.

List of minor planets visited by spacecraft

Since the 1990s, a total of 16 minor planets – various asteroids, dwarf planets, and Kuiper belt objects – have been visited by space probes. Note that moons, comets and planets are not minor planets and thus are not included in the table below.
In addition to the listed objects, three asteroids have been imaged by spacecraft at distances too large to resolve features, and are hence not considered "visited". Asteroid 132524 APL was imaged by New Horizons in 2006 at a distance of 101,867 km, 2685 Masursky by Cassini in 2000 at a distance of 1,600,000 km, and 307 Nike by Pioneer 10 in 1972 at a distance of 8,800,000 km. The Hubble Space Telescope, a spacecraft in Earth orbit, has imaged several large asteroids, including 2 Pallas and 3 Juno.

List of comets visited by spacecraft

Spacecraft visited by comets

Comet C/2013 A1 passed close by planet Mars in October 2014, closer than the Moon is to Earth. As of early 2014 it was calculated to pass as close as. This was so close that the event was deemed dangerous to spacecraft in orbit around Mars. Spacecraft that were active at that time included 2001 Mars Odyssey, Mars Express, MAVEN, Mars Orbiter Mission, and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter in Mars orbit – and two on the surface – Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity and the Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity.

Planned visits

List of minor planets targeted for spacecraft visitation

NASA's Lucy spacecraft is scheduled to tour several Jupiter trojans and one main-belt asteroid between 2025 and 2033.
The following table lists minor planets that are planned to be visited by spacecraft.

Proposals

Past

Former targets.
spacecraft failure
mission planning decisions
mission cancellation

NameDiameter
Body DiscoveredSpacecraftYearNotes
P/Encke4.8CONTOUR1998Spacecraft lost while leaving Earth orbit
P/d'Arrest3.2CONTOUR2008Spacecraft lost while leaving Earth orbit
73 P/Schwassmann–Wachmann1.1 CONTOUR2006Spacecraft lost while leaving Earth orbit
103Rosetta2007Target changed due to launch postponement
151Dawn2016Abandoned target
86CRAF1998Mission cancelled
5.1×1.8Clementine1995Mission failed before retargeting
7.5-9.4NEAR1998Abandoned target
0.6Vega 21987Secondary target; insufficient fuel
12.4Rosetta2007Secondary target; changed for better trajectory
9Rosetta2007Target in early mission planning, but not chosen
2–5Deep Space 11998Target changed due to launch postponement
5.2Rosetta2007Target changed
4Deep Space 11999Target changed due to launch postponement
4Hayabusa Mk22022Mission cancelled
~1NEAR1997Abandoned target
~1NEAP1997Mission cancelled
~1Hayabusa2002Target changed due to launch postponement
5.5Rosetta2007Target changed due to launch postponement
1992 FE0.6OSIRIS-REx2018Secondary target abandoned in 2010 during early mission planning
1989 ML0.6Hayabusa2002Target changed due to launch postponement
2002 GT0.35-0.5Deep Impact2020Communications with spacecraft lost
~0.8PROCYON2016Ion engine failure in heliocentric orbit

Recent

The following table lists minor planets that are proposed to be visited by spacecraft missions that have not yet been approved.
NameDiameterYear of
discovery		AgencyProposed yearNotes
99942 Apophis370 m2004CNASLaunch: ~2022Flyby
169P/NEAT1871CNASLaunch: ~2022Flyby
1,550 m1996CNASLaunch: ~2022Sample-return
660 m2001JAXAFlyby: 2023Potential mission extension of Hayabusa2 spacecraft.
2001NASAFlyby: 2022Potential flyby during transit by DART spacecraft.
67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko4.1×3.3×1.8 km1969NASALaunch: 2024CONDOR, a proposed asteroid sample-return mission. Not selected for launch.
88P/Howell4.4 km1981NASALaunch: 2024CORSAIR, a proposed comet sample-return mission. Not selected for launch.
67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko4.1×3.3×1.8 km1969NASALaunch: 2024CAESAR, a proposed comet sample-return mission.
65803 Didymos170 m1996ESA-NASALaunch: 2023AIDA, a proposed asteroid impactor and orbiter.
Trojan asteroids1906JAXALaunch: 2026OKEANOS, a proposed multiple flyby mission to Jupiter's Trojan asteroids using solar sail propulsion.
2 Pallas512 km1779NASALaunch: 2022
Flyby: 2024		Athena, a proposed flyby of Pallas
10199 Chariklo330 km1997NASACamilla, a mission concept for a flyby and impactor