SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 2017 VA15

2017 VA15

2017 VA15 belongs to the Apollo group of near-Earth asteroids, whose orbits cross the path of Earth; with a semi-major axis of 1.972 AU it takes 2.77 yr to circle the Sun.

Apollo Observations: 101
Orbital Period · P
2.77 yr
v(q)
36.4 km/s
v(Q)
12.4 km/s
Diameter · ≈
0.03 km
TJ
3.71
Eccentricity · e
0.4923

Orbit and dynamics

The path is an ellipse reaching 1.001 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 2.943 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 1.942 AU.

Applying Kepler's third law to a = 1.972 AU gives an orbital period of 2.77 yr, or about 1,011 days.

The high eccentricity (0.492) produces a strongly elongated orbit, so the object spends most of its time far from the Sun.

Its inclination of 1.93° keeps it close to the plane of the ecliptic.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 36.4 km/s at perihelion and falls to 12.4 km/s at aphelion.

Size and surface

No direct size measurement is available; from an absolute magnitude of H = 25.1 and an assumed geometric albedo of 0.14, the diameter works out to roughly 0.03 km.

Observation record and orbit quality

The current orbit solution is based on 101 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.402 arcseconds.

Condition code U = 7 signals a poorly constrained orbit, so its future path should be treated as provisional.

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
1.972 AU
Eccentricity
0.4923
Perihelion
1.001 AU
Aphelion
2.942816 AU
Inclination
1.93°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
27.01°

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
2029-Jan-25 18:38 0.260625 AU
38988969 km
19.39 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
25.1

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.40199
Condition
7
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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