SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 2006 SO78

2006 SO78

2006 SO78 belongs to the Apollo group of near-Earth asteroids, whose orbits cross the path of Earth; with a semi-major axis of 1.879 AU it takes 2.58 yr to circle the Sun.

Apollo Observations: 96
Orbital Period · P
2.58 yr
v(q)
40.9 km/s
v(Q)
11.5 km/s
Diameter · ≈
0.55 km
TJ
3.72
Eccentricity · e
0.5606

Orbit and dynamics

The path is an ellipse reaching 0.826 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 2.932 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 2.106 AU.

Applying Kepler's third law to a = 1.879 AU gives an orbital period of 2.58 yr, or about 941 days.

The high eccentricity (0.561) produces a strongly elongated orbit, so the object spends most of its time far from the Sun.

The orbital plane is tilted 17.35° relative to the ecliptic.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 40.9 km/s at perihelion and falls to 11.5 km/s at aphelion.

Because q < 1 AU and Q > 1 AU, this orbit geometrically intersects the region of Earth's orbit.

Size and surface

No direct size measurement is available; from an absolute magnitude of H = 19.04 and an assumed geometric albedo of 0.14, the diameter works out to roughly 0.55 km.

Observation record and orbit quality

The current orbit solution is based on 96 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.5639 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
1.879 AU
Eccentricity
0.5606
Perihelion
0.826 AU
Aphelion
2.932367 AU
Inclination
17.35°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
240.8°

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
2042-Oct-24 13:36 0.171387 AU
25639086 km
15.75 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
19.04

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.56386
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.

Keep exploring

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