612356
Add to an observing list or journal →612356 (2002 JX8)
Where is it now
- Distance from Sun
- 0.958 AU
- True anomaly
- 207.39°
- Distance from Earth
- 1.767 AU
- As of
- 16 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.
In the sky
- Right ascension
- 15h 03m 40s
- Declination
- -17° 33′ 59″
- Constellation
- Libra
- Distance from Earth
- 1.77 AU
- Elongation from the Sun
- 24.74° — near the Sun — look low at dusk or dawn
Favours the southern hemisphere; low or below the horizon from far north.
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.
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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
- 0.77 AU
- Eccentricity
- 0.3049
- Inclination
- 4.38°
- Orbital period
- 246.9 days
- Perihelion
- 0.535 AU
- Aphelion
- 1.005 AU
- Longitude of ascending node
- 68.06°
- Argument of periapsis
- 338.55°
- Epoch · J2000
- 2461200.5
- Orbit class · ATE
- Aten
- Earth MOID · 7.7 LD
- 0.0198 AU
- Tisserand (Jupiter)
- 7.486
Orbit quality
Orbit very well determined (uncertainty code 0).
- Observations used
- 762
- Data arc
- 23.06 years
- First observed
- 4 May 2002
- Last observed
- 27 May 2025
- Residual RMS
- 0.31 ″
- Solution · Otto Matic
- 26 August 2025
Visual & observation
- Absolute magnitude (H)
- 19.99
Discovery & classification
- Discovered by
- LINEAR
- Discovery date
- 4 May 2002
- Discovery site
- Socorro
Also known as 2002 JX8
Close approaches 105 on record
Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2027-04-15 18:16 UTC close approach of 612356. Catalogue miss distance 48.7 LD · 1.87 × 10⁷ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2027-04-12 to 2027-04-18, with a mark at UTC midnights and an arrow for the direction of motion. The circle is the Moon’s mean orbit; the Moon is plotted at closest approach. A ray shows the Sun’s direction. The labelled distance is the full separation. The drawn radius is the part that lies in the ecliptic plane. At closest approach the object is north of the ecliptic. The path is a geocentric ecliptic ephemeris from JPL Horizons. The inset is a heliocentric view and is approximate.
| When (UTC) | Body | Distance | Lunar distances | Relative speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2027-04-15 18:16:00 | Earth | 0.1252 AU | 48.7 LD | 8.6 km/s |
| 2030-12-24 08:17:00 | Venus | 0.0182 AU | 7.1 LD | 10.3 km/s |
| 2037-10-01 10:03:00 | Venus | 0.0442 AU | 17.2 LD | 8.8 km/s |
| 2044-05-26 13:29:00 | Earth | 0.1959 AU | 76.2 LD | 11.7 km/s |
| 2044-07-13 16:38:00 | Venus | 0.1008 AU | 39.2 LD | 6.1 km/s |
| 2045-05-17 19:34:00 | Venus | 0.1469 AU | 57.2 LD | 8.5 km/s |
| 2046-05-22 20:18:00 | Earth | 0.0286 AU | 11.1 LD | 6.1 km/s |
| 2048-04-17 21:37:00 | Earth | 0.0749 AU | 29.2 LD | 6.7 km/s |
| 2051-04-23 16:49:00 | Venus | 0.1081 AU | 42.1 LD | 6 km/s |
| 2052-02-23 03:45:00 | Venus | 0.1461 AU | 56.9 LD | 8.4 km/s |
Next ten from today. 1 lunar distance = 384,400 km. Source: JPL close-approach data.
Sources
- visual properties: JPL SBDB (lookup)
- orbital elements: JPL SBDB