SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 2021 GC

2021 GC

2021 GC belongs to the Apollo group of near-Earth asteroids, whose orbits cross the path of Earth; with a semi-major axis of 1.039 AU it takes 1.06 yr to circle the Sun.

Apollo Observations: 110
Orbital Period · P
1.06 yr
v(q)
39.5 km/s
v(Q)
21.7 km/s
Diameter · ≈
0.04 km
TJ
5.85
Eccentricity · e
0.2909

Orbit and dynamics

The path is an ellipse reaching 0.736 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 1.341 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 0.605 AU.

Applying Kepler's third law to a = 1.039 AU gives an orbital period of 1.06 yr, or about 387 days.

An eccentricity of 0.291 makes the orbit moderately elongated.

The orbital plane is tilted 10.49° relative to the ecliptic.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 39.5 km/s at perihelion and falls to 21.7 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 = 24.55 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 110 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.4335 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
1.039 AU
Eccentricity
0.2909
Perihelion
0.736 AU
Aphelion
1.341245 AU
Inclination
10.49°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
35.71°

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
2035-Sep-04 03:54 0.154278 AU
23079663 km
14.44 km/s
2036-Oct-12 00:45 0.162722 AU
24342904 km
7.44 km/s
2037-Jun-29 02:33 0.378787 AU
56665692 km
7.51 km/s
2037-Dec-28 03:58 0.287991 AU
43082772 km
9.04 km/s
2038-May-12 08:14 0.320139 AU
47892176 km
7.45 km/s
2039-Mar-25 01:15 0.020686 AU
3094554 km
8.58 km/s
2040-Apr-07 17:58 0.266592 AU
39881625 km
18.09 km/s
2053-Aug-26 10:15 0.324675 AU
48570703 km
18.81 km/s
2054-Sep-16 06:49 0.059531 AU
8905728 km
9.36 km/s
2055-Jul-24 19:35 0.342232 AU
51197144 km
6.78 km/s
2055-Nov-26 16:55 0.274071 AU
41000404 km
9.13 km/s
2056-Jun-03 09:31 0.377135 AU
56418625 km
7.74 km/s
2057-Feb-18 11:41 0.223051 AU
33368005 km
6.20 km/s
2057-Apr-06 13:57 0.215833 AU
32288185 km
6.46 km/s
2058-Apr-01 02:30 0.136355 AU
20398378 km
13.53 km/s
2059-Apr-17 05:32 0.487156 AU
72877447 km
23.68 km/s
2071-Aug-21 02:15 0.433276 AU
64817148 km
22.23 km/s
2072-Sep-07 13:57 0.098556 AU
14743838 km
12.43 km/s
2073-Oct-29 19:13 0.215919 AU
32300949 km
8.08 km/s
2074-Jun-20 22:55 0.385530 AU
57674501 km
7.66 km/s
2075-Jan-10 00:49 0.276184 AU
41316553 km
8.53 km/s
2075-May-03 11:40 0.293440 AU
43897952 km
7.19 km/s
2076-Mar-26 05:25 0.002927 AU
437898 km
10.00 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
24.55

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.43346
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

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