SpaceAtlas Space Object Data
NASA JPL SBDB · 512242

512242

512242 is an Amor-type near-Earth asteroid that approaches Earth from beyond our orbit without crossing it, orbiting the Sun at 1.598 AU once every 2.02 yr.

Amor Observations: 239
Orbital Period · P
2.02 yr
v(q)
32.6 km/s
v(Q)
17 km/s
Diameter · ≈
0.74 km
TJ
4.15
Eccentricity · e
0.3139

Orbit and dynamics

The path is an ellipse reaching 1.096 AU from the Sun at perihelion and 2.1 AU at aphelion, a radial span of 1.004 AU.

Applying Kepler's third law to a = 1.598 AU gives an orbital period of 2.02 yr, or about 738 days.

An eccentricity of 0.314 makes the orbit moderately elongated.

A steep inclination of 31.45° carries it well above and below the ecliptic plane.

By the vis-viva equation its orbital speed rises to 32.6 km/s at perihelion and falls to 17 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 = 18.42 and an assumed geometric albedo of 0.14, the diameter works out to roughly 0.74 km.

Observation record and orbit quality

The current orbit solution is based on 239 observations and has a weighted RMS residual of 0.5119 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
1.598 AU
Eccentricity
0.3139
Perihelion
1.096 AU
Aphelion
2.099612 AU
Inclination
31.45°
Orbital Period
— yr
Epoch
2461200.5
Mean Anomaly
205.72°

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
2047-Jun-13 14:35 0.173456 AU
25948698 km
18.17 km/s
2049-Jun-16 20:25 0.103086 AU
15421410 km
17.24 km/s
2051-Jun-20 21:33 0.135286 AU
20238465 km
16.80 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
18.42

Orbit Quality

RMS
0.51189
Condition
0
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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