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Centaur

2009 KE31

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(2009 KE31)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
4.996 AU
True anomaly
61.27°
Distance from Earth
4.129 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 2009 KE31 — 4.996 AU from the Sun 2009 KE31
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. 2009 KE31 is 4.129 AU from Earth today (34.3 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
03h 09m 29s
Declination
+22° 21′ 32″
Constellation
Aries
Distance from Earth
4.13 AU
Elongation from the Sun
147.69° — well clear of the Sun

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
5.509 AU
Eccentricity
0.1569
Inclination
4.95°
Orbital period
12.93 years
Perihelion
4.644 AU
Aphelion
6.373 AU
Longitude of ascending node
273.48°
Argument of periapsis
70.07°
Epoch · J2000
2454978.5
Orbit class · CEN
Centaur
Earth MOID · 1,416.5 LD
3.6397 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
2.969

Orbit quality

Orbit very uncertain — the object may be effectively lost (uncertainty code 9).

Observations used
17
Data arc
2 days
First observed
25 May 2009
Last observed
27 May 2009
Residual RMS
0.13 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
15 April 2021

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
16.96

Discovery & classification

Centaur

Sources