Rutherfordia

1249 Rutherfordia (1932 VB)

Space Reference » Main-belt Asteroids » Rutherfordia

Key Facts

Overview

Rutherfordia is a large asteroid orbiting between Mars and Jupiter in the main portion of the asteroid belt. NASA JPL has not classified Rutherfordia as potentially hazardous because its orbit does not bring it close to Earth.

Rutherfordia orbits the sun every 1,210 days (3.31 years), coming as close as 2.06 AU and reaching as far as 2.39 AU from the sun. Rutherfordia is about 13.1 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the city of Cleveland, Ohio.

The rotation of Rutherfordia has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 18.24 hours.

No Close Approaches

Rutherfordia's orbit is 1.07 AU from Earth's orbit at its closest point. This means that there is an extremely wide berth between this asteroid and Earth at all times.

Orbital simulations conducted by NASA JPL's CNEOS do not show any close approaches to Earth.

Images and Observations

Rutherfordia's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Nov. 4, 1932. It was last officially observed on July 4, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 4,482 observations used to determine its orbit.

Scientists have been able to determine this object's shape:

View asteroid Rutherfordia in 3D.

Accessibility and Exploration

This asteroid is not considered a viable target for human exploration by the NHATS study.

Similar Objects

These objects have orbits that share similar characteristics to the orbit of Rutherfordia:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 2.225 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.0761
  • Inclination: 4.87°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 258.89°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 224.27°
  • Mean Anomaly: 82.88°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 13.06300 km
  • Magnitude: 11.39
  • Albedo: 0.251
  • Spectral type (Tholen): S

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 1,210 days (3.31 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 20.00 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 2.39 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 2.06 AU
  • Rotation Period: 18.24 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of Rutherfordia is indicated by a ◯ pink circle. Note that the object may not be in your current field of view. Use the controls below to adjust position, location, and time.