SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 2018 RL4

2018 RL4

2018 RL4 is an Aten-type near-Earth asteroid whose orbit lies mostly inside that of Earth, with a semi-major axis of 0.872 AU and a period of 0.81 yr.

Aten Observations: 37
Orbital Period · P
0.81 yr
v(q)
48.7 km/s
v(Q)
20.9 km/s
Diameter · ≈
0.1 km
TJ
6.72
Eccentricity · e
0.4006

Orbit and dynamics

The path is an ellipse reaching 0.523 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 1.221 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 0.698 AU.

Applying Kepler's third law to a = 0.872 AU gives an orbital period of 0.81 yr, or about 297 days.

The high eccentricity (0.401) produces a strongly elongated orbit, so the object spends most of its time far from the Sun.

The orbital plane is tilted 5.78° relative to the ecliptic.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 48.7 km/s at perihelion and falls to 20.9 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

No direct size measurement is available; from an absolute magnitude of H = 22.74 and an assumed geometric albedo of 0.14, the diameter works out to roughly 0.1 km.

Observation record and orbit quality

The current orbit solution is based on 37 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.3357 arcseconds.

Condition code U = 3 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
0.8719 AU
Eccentricity
0.4006
Perihelion
0.523 AU
Aphelion
1.221183 AU
Inclination
5.78°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
15.1°

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-Apr-05 03:21 0.447841 AU
66996096 km
16.34 km/s
2027-Oct-14 02:05 0.152207 AU
22769771 km
8.08 km/s
2031-Aug-04 11:52 0.201717 AU
30176455 km
8.09 km/s
2032-Jan-23 09:33 0.434065 AU
64935202 km
15.78 km/s
2035-Jul-20 18:25 0.243933 AU
36491833 km
18.29 km/s
2036-Mar-12 11:49 0.470950 AU
70453136 km
18.42 km/s
2036-Oct-21 15:56 0.076498 AU
11443864 km
12.91 km/s
2040-May-04 03:15 0.381290 AU
57040227 km
11.56 km/s
2040-Sep-04 04:10 0.239701 AU
35858831 km
8.68 km/s
2040-Dec-28 01:22 0.370815 AU
55473155 km
11.30 km/s
2044-Jul-13 05:59 0.082381 AU
12323975 km
12.03 km/s
2045-Feb-19 03:28 0.469663 AU
70260607 km
18.46 km/s
2045-Oct-14 12:57 0.268033 AU
40097188 km
19.40 km/s
2048-Jul-30 12:54 0.476543 AU
71289851 km
25.86 km/s
2049-Apr-09 02:48 0.439659 AU
65772095 km
15.74 km/s
2049-Oct-06 05:05 0.179612 AU
26869597 km
8.10 km/s
2053-Jul-25 21:28 0.174189 AU
26058264 km
7.95 km/s
2054-Jan-28 08:24 0.444171 AU
66447039 km
16.53 km/s
2054-Oct-05 17:40 0.469729 AU
70270500 km
25.86 km/s
2057-Jul-21 10:35 0.268059 AU
40100986 km
19.09 km/s
2058-Mar-15 12:11 0.469885 AU
70293799 km
18.30 km/s
2058-Oct-22 15:13 0.062864 AU
9404382 km
12.27 km/s
2062-May-05 22:16 0.377080 AU
56410302 km
11.32 km/s
2062-Sep-03 12:17 0.239495 AU
35827887 km
8.68 km/s
2062-Dec-29 14:05 0.373049 AU
55807391 km
11.49 km/s
2066-Jul-13 15:55 0.079256 AU
11856472 km
11.51 km/s
2067-Feb-17 05:11 0.468180 AU
70038732 km
18.35 km/s
2067-Oct-13 16:20 0.297292 AU
44474288 km
20.34 km/s
2070-Jul-28 14:37 0.419450 AU
62748785 km
23.97 km/s
2071-Apr-01 17:49 0.453128 AU
67786958 km
16.79 km/s
2071-Oct-18 19:28 0.126519 AU
18927032 km
8.39 km/s
2075-Aug-12 16:59 0.218201 AU
32642470 km
8.33 km/s
2076-Jan-17 19:20 0.422317 AU
63177787 km
14.89 km/s
2079-Jul-15 06:04 0.092650 AU
13860288 km
13.20 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
22.74

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.33566
Condition
3
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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