SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 2020 LE2

2020 LE2

2020 LE2 is an Amor-type near-Earth asteroid that approaches Earth from beyond our orbit without crossing it, orbiting the Sun at 1.639 AU once every 2.10 yr.

Amor Observations: 118
Orbital Period · P
2.10 yr
v(q)
30.8 km/s
v(Q)
17.6 km/s
Diameter · ≈
0.12 km
TJ
4.25
Eccentricity · e
0.2728

Orbit and dynamics

Between its closest point (1.192 AU) and its farthest (2.086 AU), the heliocentric distance changes by 0.894 AU over every revolution.

One full revolution takes 2.10 yr (766 days), computed from the semi-major axis of 1.639 AU.

An eccentricity of 0.273 makes the orbit moderately elongated.

Its inclination of 1.52° keeps it close to the plane of the ecliptic.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 30.8 km/s at perihelion and falls to 17.6 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 = 22.35 and an assumed geometric albedo of 0.14, the diameter works out to roughly 0.12 km.

Observation record and orbit quality

Astrometry from 118 individual observations underpins this orbit; the fit leaves an RMS residual of 0.3792 arcseconds.

Condition code U = 0 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
1.639 AU
Eccentricity
0.2728
Perihelion
1.192 AU
Aphelion
2.086119 AU
Inclination
1.52°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
281.55°

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
2041-Aug-29 06:26 0.237891 AU
35588028 km
1.09 km/s
2043-Jun-17 03:12 0.404057 AU
60445997 km
2.26 km/s
2062-Sep-06 23:30 0.272317 AU
40738049 km
0.68 km/s
2064-Jun-23 18:52 0.369256 AU
55239880 km
1.50 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
22.35

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.37921
Condition
0
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.