SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 2021 PL1

2021 PL1

2021 PL1 is an Amor-type near-Earth asteroid that approaches Earth from beyond our orbit without crossing it, orbiting the Sun at 1.498 AU once every 1.83 yr.

Amor Observations: 27
Orbital Period · P
1.83 yr
v(q)
30.6 km/s
v(Q)
19.4 km/s
Diameter · ≈
0.14 km
TJ
4.39
Eccentricity · e
0.2236

Orbit and dynamics

The path is an ellipse reaching 1.163 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 1.833 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 0.67 AU.

Applying Kepler's third law to a = 1.498 AU gives an orbital period of 1.83 yr, or about 670 days.

An eccentricity of 0.224 makes the orbit moderately elongated.

A steep inclination of 29.02° carries it well above and below the ecliptic plane.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 30.6 km/s at perihelion and falls to 19.4 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 = 21.95 and an assumed geometric albedo of 0.14, the diameter works out to roughly 0.14 km.

Observation record and orbit quality

The current orbit solution is based on 27 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.6047 arcseconds.

Condition code U = 2 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
1.498 AU
Eccentricity
0.2236
Perihelion
1.163 AU
Aphelion
1.832953 AU
Inclination
29.02°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
187.16°

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
2032-Aug-22 00:31 0.275070 AU
41149872 km
15.14 km/s
2043-Aug-22 10:19 0.272466 AU
40760408 km
14.96 km/s
2054-Aug-21 18:36 0.273248 AU
40877357 km
14.81 km/s
2065-Aug-21 00:12 0.277957 AU
41581803 km
14.67 km/s
2076-Aug-20 04:45 0.286307 AU
42830844 km
14.56 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
21.95

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.6047
Condition
2
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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