SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 2020 SY5

2020 SY5

2020 SY5 belongs to the Apollo group of near-Earth asteroids, whose orbits cross the path of Earth; with a semi-major axis of 2.177 AU it takes 3.21 yr to circle the Sun.

Apollo Observations: 32
Orbital Period · P
3.21 yr
v(q)
37 km/s
v(Q)
11 km/s
Diameter · ≈
0.06 km
TJ
3.48
Eccentricity · e
0.5412

Orbit and dynamics

The path is an ellipse reaching 0.999 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 3.355 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 2.356 AU.

Applying Kepler's third law to a = 2.177 AU gives an orbital period of 3.21 yr, or about 1,173 days.

The high eccentricity (0.541) produces a strongly elongated orbit, so the object spends most of its time far from the Sun.

Its inclination of 2.2° keeps it close to the plane of the ecliptic.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 37 km/s at perihelion and falls to 11 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 = 24 and an assumed geometric albedo of 0.14, the diameter works out to roughly 0.06 km.

Observation record and orbit quality

The current orbit solution is based on 32 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.3891 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
2.177 AU
Eccentricity
0.5412
Perihelion
0.999 AU
Aphelion
3.355192 AU
Inclination
2.2°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
284.57°

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
2036-Nov-02 12:16 0.392981 AU
58789145 km
22.04 km/s
2049-Jul-15 01:51 0.104944 AU
15699325 km
14.80 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
24.0

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.38913
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

Explore asteroids, comets and near-Earth objects with JPL orbital data.