SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 2016 SM3

2016 SM3

2016 SM3 belongs to the Apollo group of near-Earth asteroids, whose orbits cross the path of Earth; with a semi-major axis of 2.221 AU it takes 3.31 yr to circle the Sun.

Apollo Observations: 107
Orbital Period · P
3.31 yr
v(q)
42.3 km/s
v(Q)
9.4 km/s
Diameter · ≈
0.78 km
TJ
3.17
Eccentricity · e
0.6349

Orbit and dynamics

The path is an ellipse reaching 0.811 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 3.631 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 2.82 AU.

Applying Kepler's third law to a = 2.221 AU gives an orbital period of 3.31 yr, or about 1,209 days.

The high eccentricity (0.635) produces a strongly elongated orbit, so the object spends most of its time far from the Sun.

A steep inclination of 34.94° carries it well above and below the ecliptic plane.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 42.3 km/s at perihelion and falls to 9.4 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 = 18.28 and an assumed geometric albedo of 0.14, the diameter works out to roughly 0.78 km.

Observation record and orbit quality

The current orbit solution is based on 107 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.5512 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
2.221 AU
Eccentricity
0.6349
Perihelion
0.811 AU
Aphelion
3.631113 AU
Inclination
34.94°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
283.5°

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
2027-Mar-09 23:05 0.153841 AU
23014312 km
24.64 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
18.28

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.5512
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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