Skip to content
Public Universe
Asteroid Near-Earth

2009 UG

Add to an observing list or journal →

(2009 UG)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
0.964 AU
True anomaly
217.44°
Distance from Earth
0.825 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.

Sun Earth — 0.997 AU from the Sun Earth 2009 UG — 0.964 AU from the Sun 2009 UG
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. 2009 UG is 0.825 AU from Earth today (6.9 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
09h 40m 09s
Declination
+19° 19′ 02″
Constellation
Leo
Distance from Earth
0.82 AU
Elongation from the Sun
63.01° — 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
0.788 AU
Eccentricity
0.3754
Inclination
5.02°
Orbital period
255.5 days
Perihelion
0.492 AU
Aphelion
1.084 AU
Longitude of ascending node
13.69°
Argument of periapsis
201.89°
Epoch · J2000
2461200.5
Orbit class · ATE
Aten
Earth MOID · 4.7 LD
0.012 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
7.321

Orbit quality

Orbit very well determined (uncertainty code 0).

Observations used
279
Data arc
14 years
First observed
16 October 2009
Last observed
17 October 2023
Residual RMS
0.31 ″
Solution · Giorgini
20 May 2025

Physical properties

Rotation period
5.88 hours

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
23.5

Discovery & classification

Aten Near-Earth Object

Close approaches 198 on record

Flyby geometry
Ecliptic flyby of 2009 UG at 2030-10-02 17:12 UTC Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2030-10-02 17:12 UTC close approach of 2009 UG. Catalogue miss distance 12.9 LD · 4.94 × 10⁶ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2030-09-29 to 2030-10-05, 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. The path is a geocentric ecliptic ephemeris from JPL Horizons. The inset is a heliocentric view and is approximate. Sun 30 Sep 12.9 LD · 4.94 × 10⁶ km 2030-10-02 17:12 UTC Earth Moon Heliocentric, approximate

Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2030-10-02 17:12 UTC close approach of 2009 UG. Catalogue miss distance 12.9 LD · 4.94 × 10⁶ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2030-09-29 to 2030-10-05, 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. The path is a geocentric ecliptic ephemeris from JPL Horizons. The inset is a heliocentric view and is approximate.

JPL Horizons

When (UTC) Body Distance Lunar distances Relative speed
2027-08-16 06:56:00 Venus 0.1456 AU 56.7 LD 8.7 km/s
2028-07-09 15:26:00 Venus 0.1298 AU 50.5 LD 7.8 km/s
2029-02-09 07:52:00 Mercury 0.0882 AU 34.3 LD 13.8 km/s
2029-02-09 07:52:00 Merc 0.0882 AU 34.3 LD 13.8 km/s
2030-10-02 17:12:00 Earth 0.0331 AU 12.9 LD 8.5 km/s
2032-06-28 17:13:00 Venus 0.0594 AU 23.1 LD 16 km/s
2036-02-07 01:57:00 Merc 0.0582 AU 22.7 LD 10.6 km/s
2036-02-07 01:57:00 Mercury 0.0582 AU 22.7 LD 10.6 km/s
2037-10-14 05:27:00 Earth 0.0772 AU 30.1 LD 7.7 km/s
2038-12-29 19:27:00 Venus 0.0511 AU 19.9 LD 16 km/s

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

Sources