Skip to content
Public Universe
Asteroid

Miriam

Add to an observing list or journal →

102 Miriam (A868 QA)

Miriam is an asteroid in the Main-belt asteroid orbit class. Its orbit takes it from 1.99 AU to 3.34 AU from the Sun; one orbit takes 4.35 years; it is about 83 km across. Discovered 22 August 1868 by Peters, C. H. F.. Orbit from the JPL solution of 5 June 2026.

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
3.282 AU
True anomaly
162.21°
Distance from Earth
3.985 AU
As of
24 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 — 0.994 AU from the Sun Earth Miriam — 3.282 AU from the Sun Miriam
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. Miriam is 3.985 AU from Earth today (33.1 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
11h 25m 12s
Declination
+00° 11′ 34″
Constellation
Leo
Distance from Earth
3.98 AU
Elongation from the Sun
40.3° — near the Sun — look low at dusk or dawn

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
2.664 AU
Eccentricity
0.252
Inclination
5.17°
Orbital period
4.35 years
Perihelion
1.992 AU
Aphelion
3.335 AU
Longitude of ascending node
210.62°
Argument of periapsis
147.57°
Epoch · J2000
2461200.5
Orbit class · MBA
Main-belt asteroid
Earth MOID · 385.3 LD
0.9902 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
3.333

Orbit quality

Orbit very well determined (uncertainty code 0).

Observations used
8,872
Data arc
156.2 years
First observed
28 January 1870
Last observed
11 April 2026
Residual RMS
0.31 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
5 June 2026

Physical properties

Mean radius
41 km
Rotation period
23.61 hours

Visual & observation

Geometric albedo
0.051
Absolute magnitude (H)
9.43
Colour index (B–V)
0.73
Spectral type (SMASS)
C
Spectral type (Tholen)
P
Colour index (U–B)
0.37

Discovery & classification

Discovered by
Peters, C. H. F.
Discovery date
22 August 1868
Discovery site
Clinton

Also known as 102 · A868 QA · 1944 FC · 1972 PC

Main-Belt Asteroid Named

Sources