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Asteroid

Rhodope

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166 Rhodope (A876 PB)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
2.131 AU
True anomaly
347.12°
Distance from Earth
1.197 AU
As of
22 October 2026

Two-body Kepler propagation — accurate to ~0.1% for major planets over decades, less so for highly-perturbed bodies. Use JPL Horizons for high precision.

Orbit of Mercury Orbit of Venus Orbit of Mars Sun Earth — 0.995 AU from the Sun Earth Rhodope — 2.131 AU from the Sun Rhodope
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. Rhodope is 1.197 AU from Earth today (10.0 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
01h 13m 37s
Declination
-14° 29′ 13″
Constellation
Cetus
Distance from Earth
1.2 AU
Elongation from the Sun
152.3° — well clear of the Sun

Visible from both hemispheres.

From your location

See how high it is right now, whether it is up after civil twilight, and when it rises and sets where you are.

How do I find my coordinates?

Google Maps on a computer

  1. Right-click the spot where you'll be observing.
  2. The first line of the menu is the coordinates, e.g. 51.50722, -0.12758 — click it and they're copied.
  3. Paste them above.

Google Maps on a phone

  1. Press and hold the spot to drop a pin.
  2. The coordinates appear in the search bar (or on the pin's card) — tap to copy, then paste above.

A full Google Maps link works too, but the short maps.app.goo.gl share links don't carry coordinates — copy the numbers instead. We round to about a kilometre; that's all the sky calculation needs.

Know your what3words address? Paste it, e.g. ///filled.count.soap. This is optional — the three words are sent to what3words to convert them, and we don't store the address or the result.

Your location stays in your browser and is sent only for this calculation. Using a what3words address is optional; if you do, the three words go to what3words to be converted and we don't record them. Set a location first, then you can save an email alert for this object. See our privacy policy.

Two-body approximation, good to about a degree for the planets — enough to find the constellation and know whether it is up.

Orbital elements

Semi-major axis
2.687 AU
Eccentricity
0.2102
Inclination
12.02°
Orbital period
4.4 years
Perihelion
2.122 AU
Aphelion
3.251 AU
Longitude of ascending node
128.87°
Argument of periapsis
264.17°
Epoch · J2000
2461200.5
Orbit class · MBA
Main-belt asteroid
Earth MOID · 453.9 LD
1.1664 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
3.311

Orbit quality

Orbit very well determined (uncertainty code 0).

Observations used
6,145
Data arc
149.2 years
First observed
17 August 1876
Last observed
2 November 2025
Residual RMS
0.32 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
5 June 2026

Physical properties

Mean radius
26 km
Rotation period
4.72 hours

Visual & observation

Geometric albedo
0.046
Absolute magnitude (H)
9.88
Colour index (B–V)
0.73
Spectral type (SMASS)
Xe
Spectral type (Tholen)
GC:
Colour index (U–B)
0.43

Discovery & classification

Discovered by
Peters, C. H. F.
Discovery date
15 August 1876
Discovery site
Clinton

Also known as 166 · A876 PB

Main-Belt Asteroid Named

Sources