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Asteroid Near-Earth

2017 VG15

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(2017 VG15)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
0.603 AU
True anomaly
3.08°
Distance from Earth
1.576 AU
As of
19 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 — 0.996 AU from the Sun Earth 2017 VG15 — 0.603 AU from the Sun 2017 VG15
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. 2017 VG15 is 1.576 AU from Earth today (13.1 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
14h 08m 59s
Declination
-13° 18′ 16″
Constellation
Virgo
Distance from Earth
1.57 AU
Elongation from the Sun
7.8° — too close to the Sun to observe

Visible from both hemispheres.

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
0.847 AU
Eccentricity
0.2878
Inclination
10.79°
Orbital period
284.7 days
Perihelion
0.603 AU
Aphelion
1.091 AU
Longitude of ascending node
231.14°
Argument of periapsis
352.17°
Epoch · J2000
2461200.5
Orbit class · ATE
Aten
Earth MOID · 33.2 LD
0.0853 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
6.903

Orbit quality

Orbit very well determined (uncertainty code 2).

Observations used
44
Data arc
6.99 years
First observed
15 November 2017
Last observed
11 November 2024
Residual RMS
0.36 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
12 November 2024

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
24.79

Discovery & classification

Aten Near-Earth Object

Close approaches 205 on record

Flyby geometry
Ecliptic flyby of 2017 VG15 at 2028-05-13 15:12 UTC Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2028-05-13 15:12 UTC close approach of 2017 VG15. Catalogue miss distance 157.7 LD · 6.06 × 10⁷ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2028-05-10 to 2028-05-16, 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 157.7 LD · 6.06 × 10⁷ km 2028-05-13 15:12 UTC Earth Moon Heliocentric, approximate

Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2028-05-13 15:12 UTC close approach of 2017 VG15. Catalogue miss distance 157.7 LD · 6.06 × 10⁷ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2028-05-10 to 2028-05-16, 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
2028-04-29 09:18:00 Venus 0.1482 AU 57.7 LD 12.1 km/s
2028-05-13 15:12:00 Earth 0.4053 AU 157.7 LD 15.5 km/s
2028-12-05 08:03:00 Earth 0.4338 AU 168.8 LD 21 km/s
2031-07-11 01:24:00 Venus 0.1202 AU 46.8 LD 12.6 km/s
2031-10-26 20:41:00 Earth 0.1087 AU 42.3 LD 7.9 km/s
2032-02-23 06:28:00 Earth 0.3292 AU 128.1 LD 8 km/s
2035-05-24 10:21:00 Earth 0.4022 AU 156.5 LD 15.1 km/s
2035-12-09 03:09:00 Earth 0.3496 AU 136.0 LD 18.2 km/s
2038-10-13 03:27:00 Earth 0.1195 AU 46.5 LD 8.4 km/s
2039-03-11 00:38:00 Earth 0.3571 AU 139.0 LD 10.7 km/s

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

Sources