Skip to content
Public Universe
Asteroid

Hencke

Add to an observing list or journal →

2005 Hencke (1973 RA)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
2.989 AU
True anomaly
152.05°
Distance from Earth
3.968 AU
As of
11 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 — 0.998 AU from the Sun Earth Hencke — 2.989 AU from the Sun Hencke
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. Hencke is 3.968 AU from Earth today (33.0 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
12h 43m 30s
Declination
-14° 36′ 43″
Constellation
Corvus
Distance from Earth
3.97 AU
Elongation from the Sun
9.65° — too close to the Sun to observe

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
2.62 AU
Eccentricity
0.1673
Inclination
12.24°
Orbital period
4.24 years
Perihelion
2.182 AU
Aphelion
3.059 AU
Longitude of ascending node
290.91°
Argument of periapsis
111.78°
Epoch · J2000
2461200.5
Orbit class · MBA
Main-belt asteroid
Earth MOID · 476.6 LD
1.2247 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
3.353

Orbit quality

Orbit very well determined (uncertainty code 0).

Observations used
7,747
Data arc
52.3 years
First observed
23 December 1973
Last observed
13 April 2026
Residual RMS
0.29 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
5 June 2026

Physical properties

Mean radius
4.68 km
Rotation period
10.19 hours

Visual & observation

Geometric albedo
0.265
Absolute magnitude (H)
12.41

Discovery & classification

Discovered by
Wild, P.
Discovery date
2 September 1973
Discovery site
Zimmerwald

Also known as 2005 · 1973 RA

Main-Belt Asteroid Named

Sources