Key Facts

Overview

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

Heather orbits the sun every 2,030 days (5.56 years), coming as close as 2.51 AU and reaching as far as 3.77 AU from the sun. Heather is about 14.0 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the city of Cleveland, Ohio.

The rotation of Heather has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 5.05 hours.

No Close Approaches

Heather's orbit is 1.51 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

Heather's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Dec. 22, 1949. It was last officially observed on April 19, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 2,848 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 Heather:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 3.137 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.2003
  • Inclination: 2.01°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 350.83°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 10.64°
  • Mean Anomaly: 133.86°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 13.97900 km
  • Magnitude: 12.97
  • Albedo: 0.068

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 2,030 days (5.56 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 16.81 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 3.77 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 2.51 AU
  • Rotation Period: 5.05 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of Heather 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.