SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 2021 VB

2021 VB

2021 VB belongs to the Apollo group of near-Earth asteroids, whose orbits cross the path of Earth; with a semi-major axis of 1.207 AU it takes 1.33 yr to circle the Sun.

Apollo Observations: 67
Orbital Period · P
1.33 yr
v(q)
34.3 km/s
v(Q)
21.4 km/s
Diameter · ≈
0.02 km
TJ
5.25
Eccentricity · e
0.2303

Orbit and dynamics

The path is an ellipse reaching 0.929 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 1.485 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 0.556 AU.

Applying Kepler's third law to a = 1.207 AU gives an orbital period of 1.33 yr, or about 484 days.

An eccentricity of 0.23 makes the orbit moderately elongated.

Its inclination of 4.28° keeps it close to the plane of the ecliptic.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 34.3 km/s at perihelion and falls to 21.4 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 = 25.82 and an assumed geometric albedo of 0.14, the diameter works out to roughly 0.02 km.

Observation record and orbit quality

The current orbit solution is based on 67 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.4181 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
1.207 AU
Eccentricity
0.2303
Perihelion
0.929 AU
Aphelion
1.484972 AU
Inclination
4.28°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
209.07°

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
2033-Jun-20 04:55 0.072316 AU
10818340 km
8.27 km/s
2033-Dec-21 10:08 0.319103 AU
47737059 km
5.83 km/s
2037-Jun-10 15:49 0.180014 AU
26929765 km
13.02 km/s
2038-Jan-08 03:30 0.388014 AU
58046026 km
7.12 km/s
2041-Jun-02 11:02 0.333169 AU
49841442 km
17.92 km/s
2042-Jan-23 02:58 0.439057 AU
65682065 km
7.96 km/s
2046-Feb-05 15:14 0.474270 AU
70949838 km
8.46 km/s
2050-Feb-18 09:33 0.495031 AU
74055608 km
8.69 km/s
2054-Mar-02 21:27 0.489147 AU
73175300 km
8.68 km/s
2058-Mar-15 14:42 0.462636 AU
69209419 km
8.42 km/s
2062-Nov-15 20:42 0.287535 AU
43014651 km
18.34 km/s
2066-Nov-07 10:48 0.108925 AU
16294982 km
13.22 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
25.82

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.41806
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.

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