Fortuna

19 Fortuna (A852 QA)

Space Reference » Main-belt Asteroids » Fortuna

Key Facts

Overview

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

Fortuna orbits the sun every 1,390 days (3.81 years), coming as close as 2.06 AU and reaching as far as 2.83 AU from the sun. Fortuna is about 200.0 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the U.S. state of Maryland.

The rotation of Fortuna has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 7.44 hours.

Fortuna's spectral type G (Tholen) / Ch (SMASSII) indicates that it is likely to contain water, iron, nickel, cobalt, nitrogen, and ammonia.

No Close Approaches

Fortuna's orbit is 1.06 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

Fortuna's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Sept. 14, 1852. It was last officially observed on April 3, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 8,792 observations used to determine its orbit.

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

View asteroid Fortuna 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 Fortuna:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 2.442 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.1573
  • Inclination: 1.57°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 211.04°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 182.59°
  • Mean Anomaly: 249.83°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 200.00000 km
  • Magnitude: 7.51
  • Albedo: 0.037
  • Spectral type (Tholen): G
  • Spectral type (SMASS): Ch

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 1,390 days (3.81 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 19.11 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 2.83 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 2.06 AU
  • Rotation Period: 7.44 hours
  • Approx. Composition: water, iron, nickel, cobalt, nitrogen, and ammonia.

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

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Sky Map

The position of Fortuna 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.