SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 2012 TB259

2012 TB259

2012 TB259 belongs to the Apollo group of near-Earth asteroids, whose orbits cross the path of Earth; with a semi-major axis of 1.907 AU it takes 2.63 yr to circle the Sun.

Apollo Observations: 85
Orbital Period · P
2.63 yr
v(q)
41.6 km/s
v(Q)
11.2 km/s
Diameter · ≈
0.19 km
TJ
3.71
Eccentricity · e
0.5762

Orbit and dynamics

The path is an ellipse reaching 0.808 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 3.006 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 2.198 AU.

Applying Kepler's third law to a = 1.907 AU gives an orbital period of 2.63 yr, or about 962 days.

The high eccentricity (0.576) produces a strongly elongated orbit, so the object spends most of its time far from the Sun.

The orbital plane is tilted 7.21° relative to the ecliptic.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 41.6 km/s at perihelion and falls to 11.2 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 = 21.4 and an assumed geometric albedo of 0.14, the diameter works out to roughly 0.19 km.

Observation record and orbit quality

The current orbit solution is based on 85 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.565 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
1.907 AU
Eccentricity
0.5762
Perihelion
0.808 AU
Aphelion
3.005813 AU
Inclination
7.21°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
87.53°

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
2028-Apr-25 01:35 0.441525 AU
66051130 km
27.21 km/s
2041-Sep-13 11:26 0.149886 AU
22422612 km
12.20 km/s
2049-May-29 13:41 0.091545 AU
13694924 km
13.35 km/s
2057-Apr-22 15:02 0.495971 AU
74196201 km
28.88 km/s
2062-Oct-25 16:58 0.486608 AU
72795583 km
28.46 km/s
2070-Sep-15 09:50 0.146821 AU
21964058 km
12.32 km/s
2078-Jun-06 21:45 0.118740 AU
17763250 km
12.46 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
21.4

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.565
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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