SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 2021 RA4

2021 RA4

2021 RA4 is an Aten-type near-Earth asteroid whose orbit lies mostly inside that of Earth, with a semi-major axis of 0.897 AU and a period of 0.85 yr.

Aten Observations: 41
Orbital Period · P
0.85 yr
v(q)
41.1 km/s
v(Q)
24.1 km/s
Diameter · ≈
0.05 km
TJ
6.57
Eccentricity · e
0.2618

Orbit and dynamics

The path is an ellipse reaching 0.662 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 1.131 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 0.469 AU.

Applying Kepler's third law to a = 0.897 AU gives an orbital period of 0.85 yr, or about 310 days.

An eccentricity of 0.262 makes the orbit moderately elongated.

The orbital plane is tilted 17.66° relative to the ecliptic.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 41.1 km/s at perihelion and falls to 24.1 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 = 24.32 and an assumed geometric albedo of 0.14, the diameter works out to roughly 0.05 km.

Observation record and orbit quality

The current orbit solution is based on 41 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.3594 arcseconds.

Condition code U = 5 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
0.8966 AU
Eccentricity
0.2618
Perihelion
0.662 AU
Aphelion
1.13133 AU
Inclination
17.66°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
338.9°

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-03 13:57 0.393225 AU
58825591 km
8.77 km/s
2027-Oct-04 00:59 0.245983 AU
36798489 km
9.61 km/s
2028-Jan-29 16:29 0.268412 AU
40153904 km
12.49 km/s
2032-Sep-02 06:06 0.215246 AU
32200364 km
15.69 km/s
2033-Apr-11 01:03 0.370466 AU
55420860 km
14.60 km/s
2033-Dec-10 17:15 0.349444 AU
52276022 km
14.21 km/s
2038-Sep-08 01:08 0.098390 AU
14718903 km
9.82 km/s
2039-Feb-28 10:13 0.295669 AU
44231485 km
14.17 km/s
2043-Sep-09 02:04 0.418509 AU
62608016 km
21.64 km/s
2044-May-10 21:54 0.399452 AU
59757184 km
12.16 km/s
2044-Oct-28 05:33 0.296486 AU
44353609 km
9.03 km/s
2045-Jan-09 23:24 0.275332 AU
41189075 km
11.73 km/s
2049-Sep-01 01:35 0.093032 AU
13917398 km
12.68 km/s
2050-Mar-26 04:58 0.340612 AU
50954829 km
14.87 km/s
2050-Dec-01 07:29 0.426810 AU
63849795 km
17.84 km/s
2055-Sep-20 09:26 0.178261 AU
26667488 km
9.60 km/s
2056-Feb-12 19:29 0.274517 AU
41067232 km
13.30 km/s
2060-Sep-04 21:28 0.299854 AU
44857466 km
18.50 km/s
2061-Apr-25 02:34 0.386733 AU
57854367 km
13.77 km/s
2061-Dec-23 15:40 0.296519 AU
44358553 km
12.10 km/s
2066-Sep-03 00:30 0.048819 AU
7303269 km
10.71 km/s
2067-Mar-12 11:52 0.313197 AU
46853669 km
14.64 km/s
2072-May-28 17:27 0.393922 AU
58929942 km
9.62 km/s
2072-Oct-07 01:54 0.244005 AU
36502564 km
9.58 km/s
2073-Jan-25 12:46 0.268432 AU
40156919 km
12.33 km/s
2077-Sep-02 03:04 0.158725 AU
23744892 km
15.03 km/s
2078-Apr-08 00:34 0.358894 AU
53689742 km
14.70 km/s
2078-Dec-08 20:49 0.345422 AU
51674446 km
14.93 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
24.32

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.35935
Condition
5
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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