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Trans-Neptunian object

2016 US109

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(2016 US109)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
22.391 AU
True anomaly
152.02°
Distance from Earth
22.917 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 2016 US109 — 22.391 AU from the Sun 2016 US109
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. 2016 US109 is 22.917 AU from Earth today (3.2 light-hours).

In the sky

Right ascension
16h 12m 20s
Declination
-54° 56′ 41″
Constellation
Norma
Distance from Earth
22.93 AU
Elongation from the Sun
56.62° — 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.

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
36.079 AU
Eccentricity
0.9482
Inclination
87.4°
Orbital period
216.7 years
Perihelion
1.869 AU
Aphelion
70.288 AU
Longitude of ascending node
255.98°
Argument of periapsis
173.85°
Epoch · J2000
2461200.5
Orbit class · TNO
Trans-Neptunian object
Earth MOID · 345.2 LD
0.8871 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
0.22

Orbit quality

Orbit reasonably well determined (uncertainty code 4).

Observations used
96
Data arc
107 days
First observed
19 October 2016
Last observed
3 February 2017
Residual RMS
0.5 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
2 July 2021

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
17.1

Discovery & classification

TNO

Sources