Van Ness
Van Ness follows a distinctly cometary orbit: an eccentricity of 0.563 carries it from 1.558 AU at perihelion out to 5.568 AU at aphelion.
Orbit and dynamics
Between its closest point (1.558 AU) and its farthest (5.568 AU), the heliocentric distance changes by 4.01 AU over every revolution.
One full revolution takes 6.73 yr (2,456 days), computed from the semi-major axis of 3.563 AU.
The high eccentricity (0.563) produces a strongly elongated orbit, so the object spends most of its time far from the Sun.
A steep inclination of 36.25° carries it well above and below the ecliptic plane.
By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 29.8 km/s at perihelion and falls to 8.3 km/s at aphelion.
Its Tisserand parameter with respect to Jupiter is T_J = 2.56, a standard discriminator between asteroidal and cometary dynamics.
Size and surface
Neither a measured diameter nor a reliable absolute magnitude is available for Van Ness, so its physical size remains unconstrained.
Observation record and orbit quality
Astrometry from 900 individual observations underpins this orbit; the fit leaves an RMS residual of 0.511 arcseconds.
Condition code U = 0 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
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
No close approaches to Earth are currently on record for this object.
