SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 2020 AT

2020 AT

2020 AT is an Aten-type near-Earth asteroid whose orbit lies mostly inside that of Earth, with a semi-major axis of 0.986 AU and a period of 0.98 yr.

Aten Observations: 86
Orbital Period · P
0.98 yr
v(q)
38.5 km/s
v(Q)
23.3 km/s
Diameter · ≈
0.03 km
TJ
6.09
Eccentricity · e
0.2459

Orbit and dynamics

The path is an ellipse reaching 0.744 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 1.229 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 0.485 AU.

Applying Kepler's third law to a = 0.986 AU gives an orbital period of 0.98 yr, or about 358 days.

An eccentricity of 0.246 makes the orbit moderately elongated.

The orbital plane is tilted 14.66° relative to the ecliptic.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 38.5 km/s at perihelion and falls to 23.3 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 = 25.2 and an assumed geometric albedo of 0.14, the diameter works out to roughly 0.03 km.

Observation record and orbit quality

The current orbit solution is based on 86 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.4002 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
0.9861 AU
Eccentricity
0.2459
Perihelion
0.744 AU
Aphelion
1.228582 AU
Inclination
14.66°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
291.98°

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-Jun-07 21:01 0.138111 AU
20661174 km
11.29 km/s
2028-May-26 21:23 0.158629 AU
23730511 km
13.86 km/s
2029-May-18 09:55 0.229400 AU
34317787 km
17.09 km/s
2030-May-11 04:21 0.323384 AU
48377501 km
20.58 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
25.2

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.40021
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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