SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 2018 LN

2018 LN

2018 LN belongs to the Apollo group of near-Earth asteroids, whose orbits cross the path of Earth; with a semi-major axis of 1.506 AU it takes 1.85 yr to circle the Sun.

Apollo Observations: 143
Orbital Period · P
1.85 yr
v(q)
44.9 km/s
v(Q)
13.1 km/s
Diameter · ≈
0.31 km
TJ
4.27
Eccentricity · e
0.5479

Orbit and dynamics

The path is an ellipse reaching 0.681 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 2.331 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 1.65 AU.

Applying Kepler's third law to a = 1.506 AU gives an orbital period of 1.85 yr, or about 675 days.

The high eccentricity (0.548) produces a strongly elongated orbit, so the object spends most of its time far from the Sun.

A steep inclination of 25.32° carries it well above and below the ecliptic plane.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 44.9 km/s at perihelion and falls to 13.1 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 = 20.27 and an assumed geometric albedo of 0.14, the diameter works out to roughly 0.31 km.

Observation record and orbit quality

The current orbit solution is based on 143 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.4176 arcseconds.

Condition code U = 6 indicates a moderately constrained orbit; predictions decades ahead still carry noticeable uncertainty.

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
1.506 AU
Eccentricity
0.5479
Perihelion
0.681 AU
Aphelion
2.331137 AU
Inclination
25.32°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
75.55°

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-Jan-02 17:06 0.421584 AU
63068133 km
32.32 km/s
2029-Oct-13 07:37 0.373909 AU
55935930 km
18.34 km/s
2031-Jun-07 15:46 0.291213 AU
43564904 km
26.17 km/s
2040-Dec-07 22:36 0.129178 AU
19324759 km
21.73 km/s
2042-Jun-19 10:13 0.273576 AU
40926316 km
15.17 km/s
2055-Jun-10 13:38 0.232342 AU
34757873 km
24.19 km/s
2066-Jun-18 19:40 0.306157 AU
45800412 km
14.60 km/s
2079-Jun-11 09:17 0.232715 AU
34813613 km
23.66 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
20.27

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.41757
Condition
6
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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