Key Facts
- Categorized as a Main-belt Asteroid
- Comparable in size to the San Francisco Bay (4.84 km diameter)
- Not a Near Earth Object
- Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
- See orbit simulation
Overview
Apta is a mid-sized asteroid orbiting between Mars and Jupiter in the main portion of the asteroid belt. NASA JPL has not classified Apta as potentially hazardous because its orbit does not bring it close to Earth.
Apta orbits the sun every 1,540 days (4.22 years), coming as close as 2.34 AU and reaching as far as 2.87 AU from the sun. Apta is about 4.8 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the San Francisco Bay.
The rotation of Apta has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 3.29 hours.
No Close Approaches
Apta's orbit is 1.34 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
Apta's orbit is determined by observations dating back to April 18, 1972. It was last officially observed on June 23, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 2,836 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 Apta:References
Search
or view a random objectOrbital Elements
- Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
- Semi-major axis: 2.606 AU
- Eccentricity: 0.1006
- Inclination: 4.38°
- Longitude of Ascending Node: 165.27°
- Argument of Periapsis: 42.54°
- Mean Anomaly: 86.22°
Physical Characteristics
- Diameter: 4.83500 km
- Magnitude: 13.85
- Albedo: 0.250
Derived Characteristics
- Orbit Period: 1,540 days (4.22 years)
- Avg. Orbit Speed: 18.41 km/s
- Aphelion Distance: 2.87 AU
- Perihelion Distance: 2.34 AU
- Rotation Period: 3.29 hours
Map Comparison
Orbit Simulation
Sky Map
The position of Apta 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 Apta 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.
