Key Facts
- Categorized as a Main-belt Asteroid
- Comparable in size to the San Francisco Bay (6.66 km diameter)
- Not a Near Earth Object
- Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
- See orbit simulation
Overview
Merrillhess is a mid-sized asteroid orbiting between Mars and Jupiter in the main portion of the asteroid belt. NASA JPL has not classified Merrillhess as potentially hazardous because its orbit does not bring it close to Earth.
Merrillhess orbits the sun every 1,710 days (4.68 years), coming as close as 2.16 AU and reaching as far as 3.43 AU from the sun. Merrillhess is about 6.7 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the San Francisco Bay.
No Close Approaches
Merrillhess's orbit is 1.17 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
Merrillhess's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Feb. 15, 1999. It was last officially observed on May 23, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 1,179 observations used to determine its orbit.
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 Merrillhess:References
Search
or view a random objectOrbital Elements
- Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
- Semi-major axis: 2.794 AU
- Eccentricity: 0.2275
- Inclination: 9.01°
- Longitude of Ascending Node: 255.13°
- Argument of Periapsis: 145.23°
- Mean Anomaly: 149.99°
Physical Characteristics
- Diameter: 6.65500 km
- Magnitude: 14.99
- Albedo: 0.041
Derived Characteristics
- Orbit Period: 1,710 days (4.68 years)
- Avg. Orbit Speed: 17.78 km/s
- Aphelion Distance: 3.43 AU
- Perihelion Distance: 2.16 AU
Map Comparison
Orbit Simulation
Sky Map
The position of Merrillhess 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.
Size Rendering
The above comparison is an artistic rendering that uses available data on the diameter of Merrillhess to create an approximate landscape rendering with Mount Everest in the background. This approximation is built for full-resolution desktop browsers. Shape, color, and texture of asteroid are imagined.
