Orbit and dynamics
The path is an ellipse reaching 0.808 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 5.324 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 4.516 AU.
Applying Kepler's third law to a = 3.066 AU gives an orbital period of 5.37 yr, or about 1,961 days.
The high eccentricity (0.737) produces a strongly elongated orbit, so the object spends most of its time far from the Sun.
The orbital plane is tilted 13.95° relative to the ecliptic.
By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 43.7 km/s at perihelion and falls to 6.6 km/s at aphelion.
Because q < 1 AU and Q > 1 AU, this orbit geometrically intersects the region of Earth's orbit.
Its Tisserand parameter with respect to Jupiter is T_J = 2.71, a standard discriminator between asteroidal and cometary dynamics.
Size and surface
Neither a measured diameter nor a reliable absolute magnitude is available for Machholz, so its physical size remains unconstrained.
Observation record and orbit quality
The current orbit solution is based on 11 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.3463 arcseconds.
Condition code U = 8 signals a poorly constrained orbit, so its future path should be treated as provisional.
About these computed values
Orbital periods, perihelion and aphelion speeds, and diameter estimates on this page are computed by SpaceAtlas from the JPL SBDB orbital elements. They are derived quantities, not values copied from the source catalogue.
Orbital Parameters
Orbit diagram
The Sun sits at the focus (orange). Earth's orbit is the grey circle at 1 AU. The red dot marks the object's position at the catalog epoch.
3D orbit (interactive)
Drag to rotate; scroll or pinch to zoom. The Sun is at the focus (orange), Earth's orbit is the grey ring at 1 AU, and the red dot marks the object's current position.
Close approaches
No close approaches to Earth are currently on record for this object.
Physical Parameters
Orbit Quality
Related Objects
Same object type
Similar orbit
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