Key Facts
- Categorized as a Main-belt Asteroid
- Comparable in size to the San Francisco Bay (6.46 km diameter)
- Not a Near Earth Object
- Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
- See orbit simulation
Overview
Samaan is a mid-sized asteroid orbiting between Mars and Jupiter in the main portion of the asteroid belt. NASA JPL has not classified Samaan as potentially hazardous because its orbit does not bring it close to Earth.
Samaan orbits the sun every 1,670 days (4.57 years), coming as close as 2.51 AU and reaching as far as 2.99 AU from the sun. Samaan is about 6.5 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the San Francisco Bay.
No Close Approaches
Samaan's orbit is 1.50 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
Samaan's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Dec. 8, 1991. It was last officially observed on Nov. 21, 2022. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 1,862 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 Samaan:References
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or view a random objectOrbital Elements
- Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
- Semi-major axis: 2.754 AU
- Eccentricity: 0.087
- Inclination: 7.5°
- Longitude of Ascending Node: 163.68°
- Argument of Periapsis: 150.63°
- Mean Anomaly: 96.03°
Physical Characteristics
- Diameter: 6.46200 km
- Magnitude: 14.98
- Albedo: 0.067
Derived Characteristics
- Orbit Period: 1,670 days (4.57 years)
- Avg. Orbit Speed: 17.94 km/s
- Aphelion Distance: 2.99 AU
- Perihelion Distance: 2.51 AU
Map Comparison
Orbit Simulation
Sky Map
The position of Samaan 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 Samaan 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.
