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Asteroid Near-Earth

468540

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468540 (2006 MD12)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
0.364 AU
True anomaly
40.37°
Distance from Earth
1.202 AU
As of
19 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.

Sun Earth — 0.996 AU from the Sun Earth 468540 — 0.364 AU from the Sun 468540
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. 468540 is 1.202 AU from Earth today (10.0 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
12h 35m 54s
Declination
-09° 03′ 16″
Constellation
Virgo
Distance from Earth
1.21 AU
Elongation from the Sun
15.61° — 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
0.839 AU
Eccentricity
0.6052
Inclination
27.27°
Orbital period
280.5 days
Perihelion
0.331 AU
Aphelion
1.346 AU
Longitude of ascending node
291.81°
Argument of periapsis
174.57°
Epoch · J2000
2461200.5
Orbit class · ATE
Aten
Earth MOID · 88.6 LD
0.2277 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
6.773

Orbit quality

Orbit very well determined (uncertainty code 0).

Observations used
342
Data arc
20.15 years
First observed
20 June 2006
Last observed
13 August 2026
Residual RMS
0.43 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
14 October 2026

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
19.45

Discovery & classification

Discovered by
Mt. Lemmon Survey
Discovery date
20 June 2006
Discovery site
Mount Lemmon

Also known as 2006 MD12

Aten Near-Earth Object

Close approaches 57 on record

When (UTC) Body Distance Lunar distances Relative speed
2028-04-24 17:28:00 Mercury 0.0276 AU 10.7 LD 35.1 km/s
2028-04-24 17:28:00 Merc 0.0276 AU 10.7 LD 35.1 km/s
2040-08-07 05:33:00 Merc 0.0356 AU 13.9 LD 33.8 km/s
2040-08-07 05:33:00 Mercury 0.0356 AU 13.9 LD 33.8 km/s
2044-10-30 13:15:00 Mars 0.0797 AU 31.0 LD 13.9 km/s
2052-11-20 05:01:00 Mercury 0.0944 AU 36.7 LD 34.4 km/s
2052-11-20 05:01:00 Merc 0.0944 AU 36.7 LD 34.4 km/s
2056-09-24 00:56:00 Merc 0.0734 AU 28.6 LD 37.8 km/s
2056-09-24 00:56:00 Mercury 0.0734 AU 28.6 LD 37.8 km/s
2069-01-07 01:10:00 Mercury 0.0205 AU 8.0 LD 34.3 km/s

Next ten from today. 1 lunar distance = 384,400 km. Source: JPL close-approach data.

Sources