SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 437994

437994

437994 belongs to the Apollo group of near-Earth asteroids, whose orbits cross the path of Earth; with a semi-major axis of 3.279 AU it takes 5.94 yr to circle the Sun.

Apollo Observations: 495
Orbital Period · P
5.94 yr
v(q)
39.4 km/s
v(Q)
6.9 km/s
Diameter · ≈
1.13 km
TJ
2.65
Eccentricity · e
0.7034

Orbit and dynamics

The path is an ellipse reaching 0.973 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 5.585 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 4.612 AU.

Applying Kepler's third law to a = 3.279 AU gives an orbital period of 5.94 yr, or about 2,169 days.

The high eccentricity (0.703) produces a strongly elongated orbit, so the object spends most of its time far from the Sun.

The orbital plane is tilted 19.82° relative to the ecliptic.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 39.4 km/s at perihelion and falls to 6.9 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

The measured diameter is 1.08 km, a value from direct size determination rather than from brightness alone.

A geometric albedo of 0.2 points to a comparatively bright, reflective surface.

Observation record and orbit quality

The current orbit solution is based on 495 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.5303 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

Semi-Major Axis
3.279 AU
Eccentricity
0.7034
Perihelion
0.973 AU
Aphelion
5.585449 AU
Inclination
19.82°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
276.34°

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.

Physical Parameters

Diameter
1.078 km
Albedo
0.2
Density
— g/cm³
Rotation Period
— h
Absolute Magnitude
17.48

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.53029
Condition
0
Orbit ID
—
Data source: NASA JPL Small-Body Database . 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

Explore asteroids, comets and near-Earth objects with JPL orbital data.