SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 2020 WK3

2020 WK3

2020 WK3 belongs to the Apollo group of near-Earth asteroids, whose orbits cross the path of Earth; with a semi-major axis of 1.445 AU it takes 1.74 yr to circle the Sun.

Apollo Observations: 102
Orbital Period · P
1.74 yr
v(q)
34.8 km/s
v(Q)
17.7 km/s
Diameter · ≈
0.04 km
TJ
4.59
Eccentricity · e
0.326

Orbit and dynamics

The path is an ellipse reaching 0.974 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 1.916 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 0.942 AU.

Applying Kepler's third law to a = 1.445 AU gives an orbital period of 1.74 yr, or about 634 days.

An eccentricity of 0.326 makes the orbit moderately elongated.

The orbital plane is tilted 7.74° relative to the ecliptic.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 34.8 km/s at perihelion and falls to 17.7 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 = 25 and an assumed geometric albedo of 0.14, the diameter works out to roughly 0.04 km.

Observation record and orbit quality

The current orbit solution is based on 102 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.3711 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
1.445 AU
Eccentricity
0.326
Perihelion
0.974 AU
Aphelion
1.91607 AU
Inclination
7.74°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
45.71°

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-Nov-11 23:11 0.301263 AU
45068362 km
16.22 km/s
2028-Apr-11 00:43 0.444316 AU
66468724 km
6.21 km/s
2060-Nov-05 06:28 0.451732 AU
67578141 km
19.50 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
25.0

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.37107
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.

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