Key Facts

Overview

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

Roberta orbits the sun every 1,420 days (3.89 years), coming as close as 2.05 AU and reaching as far as 2.90 AU from the sun. Roberta is about 97.1 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the U.S. state of Delaware.

The rotation of Roberta has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 12.05 hours.

Roberta's spectral type FP (Tholen) / B (SMASSII) indicates that it is likely to contain hydrogen, nitrogen, ammonia, and iron.

No Close Approaches

Roberta's orbit is 1.04 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

Roberta's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Sept. 1, 1892. It was last officially observed on July 4, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 5,820 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 Roberta:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 2.476 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.1722
  • Inclination: 5.1°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 148.42°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 139.8°
  • Mean Anomaly: 293.68°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 97.10900 km
  • Magnitude: 9.15
  • Albedo: 0.049
  • Spectral type (Tholen): FP
  • Spectral type (SMASS): B

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 1,420 days (3.89 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 18.97 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 2.90 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 2.05 AU
  • Rotation Period: 12.05 hours
  • Approx. Composition: hydrogen, nitrogen, ammonia, and iron.

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of Roberta 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.