Erb

Key Facts

• Categorized as a Mars-crossing Asteroid
• Comparable in size to the island of Manhattan (3.30 km diameter)
• Not a Near Earth Object
• Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
• See orbit simulation

Overview

Erb is a mid-sized asteroid with an orbit that crosses the orbit of Mars. NASA JPL has not classified Erb as potentially hazardous because its orbit does not bring it close to Earth.

Erb orbits the sun every 1,280 days (3.50 years), coming as close as 1.41 AU and reaching as far as 3.19 AU from the sun. Erb is about 3.3 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the island of Manhattan.

The rotation of Erb has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 8.03 hours.

No Close Approaches

Erb's orbit is 0.40 AU from Earth's orbit at its closest point. This means that there is a 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

Erb's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Sept. 17, 1955. It was last officially observed on March 13, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 2,684 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 Erb:

• 18 Melpomene (A852 MA)
• 80 Sappho (A864 JA)
• 428 Monachia (A897 WA)

References

• JPL Small Body Database
• Mission Design
• Sky Finder Chart

Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of Erb 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 Erb 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.