Skip to content
Public Universe
Asteroid Near-Earth

2010 VP21

Add to an observing list or journal →

(2010 VP21)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
1.05 AU
True anomaly
196.81°
Distance from Earth
0.851 AU
As of
15 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 2010 VP21 — 1.05 AU from the Sun 2010 VP21
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. 2010 VP21 is 0.851 AU from Earth today (7.1 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
09h 16m 00s
Declination
+22° 03′ 01″
Constellation
Cancer
Distance from Earth
0.84 AU
Elongation from the Sun
68.73° — 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
0.718 AU
Eccentricity
0.5344
Inclination
8.7°
Orbital period
222.2 days
Perihelion
0.334 AU
Aphelion
1.102 AU
Longitude of ascending node
39°
Argument of periapsis
195.75°
Epoch · J2000
2461200.5
Orbit class · ATE
Aten
Earth MOID · 8.8 LD
0.0227 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
7.868

Orbit quality

Orbit very well determined (uncertainty code 1).

Observations used
141
Data arc
14.08 years
First observed
5 November 2010
Last observed
4 December 2024
Residual RMS
0.41 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
5 December 2024

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
23.39

Discovery & classification

Aten Near-Earth Object

Close approaches 345 on record

Flyby geometry
Ecliptic flyby of 2010 VP21 at 2027-10-23 19:14 UTC Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2027-10-23 19:14 UTC close approach of 2010 VP21. Catalogue miss distance 16.7 LD · 6.41 × 10⁶ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2027-10-20 to 2027-10-26, 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 south of the ecliptic. The path is a geocentric ecliptic ephemeris from JPL Horizons. The inset is a heliocentric view and is approximate. Sun 21 Oct 26 Oct 16.7 LD · 6.41 × 10⁶ km 2027-10-23 19:14 UTC Earth Moon Heliocentric, approximate

Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2027-10-23 19:14 UTC close approach of 2010 VP21. Catalogue miss distance 16.7 LD · 6.41 × 10⁶ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2027-10-20 to 2027-10-26, 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 south of the ecliptic. 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
2027-10-23 19:14:00 Earth 0.0428 AU 16.7 LD 14.5 km/s
2031-04-01 21:31:00 Mercury 0.0115 AU 4.5 LD 27.6 km/s
2031-04-01 21:31:00 Merc 0.0115 AU 4.5 LD 27.6 km/s
2034-12-17 04:49:00 Mercury 0.0652 AU 25.4 LD 22.9 km/s
2034-12-17 04:49:00 Merc 0.0652 AU 25.4 LD 22.9 km/s
2035-12-09 06:44:00 Earth 0.0992 AU 38.6 LD 12.4 km/s
2036-03-07 08:56:00 Mercury 0.0558 AU 21.7 LD 35.1 km/s
2036-03-07 08:56:00 Merc 0.0558 AU 21.7 LD 35.1 km/s
2038-11-10 14:50:00 Earth 0.1129 AU 44.0 LD 11.3 km/s
2041-08-07 07:39:00 Mercury 0.0502 AU 19.6 LD 35 km/s

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

Sources