SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 2021 LO6

2021 LO6

2021 LO6 belongs to the Apollo group of near-Earth asteroids, whose orbits cross the path of Earth; with a semi-major axis of 1.255 AU it takes 1.41 yr to circle the Sun.

Apollo Observations: 8
Orbital Period · P
1.41 yr
v(q)
33.4 km/s
v(Q)
21.2 km/s
Diameter · ≈
0.01 km
TJ
5.09
Eccentricity · e
0.2229

Orbit and dynamics

The path is an ellipse reaching 0.975 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 1.535 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 0.56 AU.

Applying Kepler's third law to a = 1.255 AU gives an orbital period of 1.41 yr, or about 514 days.

An eccentricity of 0.223 makes the orbit moderately elongated.

The orbital plane is tilted 11.35° relative to the ecliptic.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 33.4 km/s at perihelion and falls to 21.2 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 = 27.57 and an assumed geometric albedo of 0.14, the diameter works out to roughly 0.01 km.

Observation record and orbit quality

The current orbit solution is based on 8 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.5243 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
1.255 AU
Eccentricity
0.2229
Perihelion
0.975 AU
Aphelion
1.534739 AU
Inclination
11.35°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
164.95°

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-Oct-04 04:14 0.207462 AU
31035813 km
11.50 km/s
2073-Sep-23 02:25 0.212128 AU
31733840 km
7.62 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
27.57

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.52427
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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