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Asteroid Near-Earth

Bede

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3691 Bede (1982 FT)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
1.768 AU
True anomaly
254.21°
Distance from Earth
2.188 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 Bede — 1.768 AU from the Sun Bede
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. Bede is 2.188 AU from Earth today (18.2 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
10h 17m 27s
Declination
+24° 04′ 18″
Constellation
Leo
Distance from Earth
2.18 AU
Elongation from the Sun
52.75° — near the Sun — look low at dusk or dawn

Favours the northern hemisphere; low or below the horizon from far south.

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
1.774 AU
Eccentricity
0.2844
Inclination
20.35°
Orbital period
863.3 days
Perihelion
1.27 AU
Aphelion
2.279 AU
Longitude of ascending node
348.69°
Argument of periapsis
235.04°
Epoch · J2000
2461200.5
Orbit class · AMO
Amor
Earth MOID · 136.9 LD
0.3518 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
3.982

Orbit quality

Orbit very well determined (uncertainty code 0).

Observations used
8,374
Data arc
50.65 years
First observed
9 June 1975
Last observed
1 February 2026
Residual RMS
0.32 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
17 September 2026

Physical properties

Mean radius
2.15 km
Rotation period
9.45 days

Visual & observation

Geometric albedo
0.515
Absolute magnitude (H)
14.93
Spectral type (SMASS)
Xc

Discovery & classification

Discovered by
Gonzalez, L. E.
Discovery date
29 March 1982
Discovery site
Cerro El Roble

The Venerable Bede (c. 672-735), the “Father of English History” who popularized the A.D. reckoning of years, compiled a history of England since the time of Caesar. The name follows a suggestion by B. Hafferty in the BBC <i>Word of Mouth</i> competition in this centenary year of St. Bede's School, Bradford, West Yorkshire.

Also known as 3691 · 1982 FT

Amor Near-Earth Object Named

Sources