SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 2016 HN3

2016 HN3

2016 HN3 belongs to the Apollo group of near-Earth asteroids, whose orbits cross the path of Earth; with a semi-major axis of 2.148 AU it takes 3.15 yr to circle the Sun.

Apollo Observations: 35
Orbital Period · P
3.15 yr
v(q)
38 km/s
v(Q)
10.9 km/s
Diameter · ≈
0.19 km
TJ
3.43
Eccentricity · e
0.556

Orbit and dynamics

The path is an ellipse reaching 0.954 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 3.342 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 2.388 AU.

Applying Kepler's third law to a = 2.148 AU gives an orbital period of 3.15 yr, or about 1,150 days.

The high eccentricity (0.556) produces a strongly elongated orbit, so the object spends most of its time far from the Sun.

The orbital plane is tilted 19.34° relative to the ecliptic.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 38 km/s at perihelion and falls to 10.9 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

The measured diameter is 0.37 km, a value from direct size determination rather than from brightness alone.

Its geometric albedo of 0.029 indicates a very dark, carbonaceous-type surface.

Observation record and orbit quality

The current orbit solution is based on 35 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.3639 arcseconds.

Condition code U = 1 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
2.148 AU
Eccentricity
0.556
Perihelion
0.954 AU
Aphelion
3.342288 AU
Inclination
19.34°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
66.87°

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
2038-Jun-02 07:40 0.082408 AU
12328108 km
13.96 km/s
2057-Apr-16 08:06 0.445281 AU
66613088 km
24.15 km/s
2060-Jul-27 09:47 0.365279 AU
54645010 km
17.13 km/s
2079-May-24 23:29 0.037265 AU
5574720 km
14.36 km/s

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

Physical Parameters

Diameter
0.371 km
Albedo
0.029
Density
— g/cm³
Rotation Period
— h
Absolute Magnitude
21.38

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.36385
Condition
1
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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