SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 2020 RU3

2020 RU3

2020 RU3 is an Amor-type near-Earth asteroid that approaches Earth from beyond our orbit without crossing it, orbiting the Sun at 1.722 AU once every 2.26 yr.

Amor Observations: 36
Orbital Period · P
2.26 yr
v(q)
29.5 km/s
v(Q)
17.4 km/s
Diameter · ≈
0.2 km
TJ
4.12
Eccentricity · e
0.258

Orbit and dynamics

The path is an ellipse reaching 1.278 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 2.166 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 0.888 AU.

Applying Kepler's third law to a = 1.722 AU gives an orbital period of 2.26 yr, or about 825 days.

An eccentricity of 0.258 makes the orbit moderately elongated.

The orbital plane is tilted 10.21° relative to the ecliptic.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 29.5 km/s at perihelion and falls to 17.4 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 = 21.21 and an assumed geometric albedo of 0.14, the diameter works out to roughly 0.2 km.

Observation record and orbit quality

The current orbit solution is based on 36 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.5207 arcseconds.

Condition code U = 2 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
1.722 AU
Eccentricity
0.258
Perihelion
1.278 AU
Aphelion
2.166276 AU
Inclination
10.21°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
138.12°

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-21 20:34 0.494962 AU
74045274 km
4.06 km/s
2036-Dec-22 13:57 0.400193 AU
59867975 km
1.61 km/s
2045-Nov-21 09:29 0.332459 AU
49735104 km
3.86 km/s
2054-Oct-30 09:21 0.350936 AU
52499299 km
5.04 km/s
2063-Oct-11 09:41 0.445676 AU
66672246 km
5.84 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
21.21

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.52068
Condition
2
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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