SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 2018 QW

2018 QW

2018 QW is an Amor-type near-Earth asteroid that approaches Earth from beyond our orbit without crossing it, orbiting the Sun at 1.345 AU once every 1.56 yr.

Amor Observations: 39
Orbital Period · P
1.56 yr
v(q)
31.8 km/s
v(Q)
20.8 km/s
Diameter · ≈
0.08 km
TJ
4.78
Eccentricity · e
0.2097

Orbit and dynamics

The path is an ellipse reaching 1.063 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 1.627 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 0.564 AU.

Applying Kepler's third law to a = 1.345 AU gives an orbital period of 1.56 yr, or about 570 days.

An eccentricity of 0.21 makes the orbit moderately elongated.

A steep inclination of 23.74° carries it well above and below the ecliptic plane.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 31.8 km/s at perihelion and falls to 20.8 km/s at aphelion.

Its perihelion lies just outside Earth's orbit, which is why it is classed as Earth-approaching rather than Earth-crossing.

Size and surface

No direct size measurement is available; from an absolute magnitude of H = 23.2 and an assumed geometric albedo of 0.14, the diameter works out to roughly 0.08 km.

Observation record and orbit quality

The current orbit solution is based on 39 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.2856 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
1.345 AU
Eccentricity
0.2097
Perihelion
1.063 AU
Aphelion
1.627047 AU
Inclination
23.74°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
348.97°

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
2032-Aug-28 14:55 0.094008 AU
14063346 km
12.82 km/s
2043-Aug-10 22:09 0.212283 AU
31757026 km
17.71 km/s
2046-Sep-04 14:06 0.145985 AU
21839082 km
14.89 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
23.2

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.2856
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.

Keep exploring

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