SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 1998 VP

1998 VP

1998 VP is an Amor-type near-Earth asteroid that approaches Earth from beyond our orbit without crossing it, orbiting the Sun at 1.973 AU once every 2.77 yr.

Amor Observations: 118
Orbital Period · P
2.77 yr
v(q)
35.8 km/s
v(Q)
12.5 km/s
Diameter · ≈
0.54 km
TJ
3.4
Eccentricity · e
0.4815

Orbit and dynamics

The path is an ellipse reaching 1.023 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 2.923 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 1.9 AU.

Applying Kepler's third law to a = 1.973 AU gives an orbital period of 2.77 yr, or about 1,012 days.

The high eccentricity (0.481) produces a strongly elongated orbit, so the object spends most of its time far from the Sun.

A steep inclination of 45.06° carries it well above and below the ecliptic plane.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 35.8 km/s at perihelion and falls to 12.5 km/s at aphelion.

Its perihelion lies just outside Earth's orbit, which is why it is classed as Earth-approaching rather than Earth-crossing.

Size and surface

No direct size measurement is available; from an absolute magnitude of H = 19.08 and an assumed geometric albedo of 0.14, the diameter works out to roughly 0.54 km.

Observation record and orbit quality

The current orbit solution is based on 118 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.4621 arcseconds.

Condition code U = 0 means the orbit is very well determined, leaving only a small uncertainty in the future ephemeris.

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

Semi-Major Axis
1.973 AU
Eccentricity
0.4815
Perihelion
1.023 AU
Aphelion
2.923 AU
Inclination
45.06°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
10.52°

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

Predicted close approaches to Earth, from NASA's Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS).

Date (UTC)Miss distanceVelocity
2034-Nov-02 07:48 0.331850 AU
49644104 km
26.29 km/s
2059-Oct-29 04:13 0.358053 AU
53564001 km
23.29 km/s
2070-Nov-07 21:51 0.466965 AU
69857030 km
30.01 km/s

Distances in astronomical units (AU) and kilometres. Source: NASA/JPL CNEOS Close Approach Data API.

Physical Parameters

Diameter
— km
Albedo
—
Density
— g/cm³
Rotation Period
— h
Absolute Magnitude
19.08

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.46214
Condition
0
Orbit ID
—
Data source: NASA JPL Small-Body Database · NASA CNEOS. 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.

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