Skip to content
Public Universe
Asteroid Near-Earth

2026 MB

Add to an observing list or journal →

(2026 MB)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
1.024 AU
True anomaly
242.59°
Distance from Earth
0.417 AU
As of
24 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 — 0.994 AU from the Sun Earth 2026 MB — 1.024 AU from the Sun 2026 MB
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. 2026 MB is 0.417 AU from Earth today (3.5 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
19h 52m 31s
Declination
-34° 51′ 18″
Constellation
Sagittarius
Distance from Earth
0.42 AU
Elongation from the Sun
82.03° — well clear of the Sun

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
0.975 AU
Eccentricity
0.1504
Inclination
5.68°
Orbital period
351.9 days
Perihelion
0.829 AU
Aphelion
1.122 AU
Longitude of ascending node
111.68°
Argument of periapsis
13.97°
Epoch · J2000
2461200.5
Orbit class · ATE
Aten
Earth MOID · 28.2 LD
0.0726 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
6.186

Orbit quality

Orbit reasonably well determined (uncertainty code 4).

Observations used
34
Data arc
24 days
First observed
9 June 2026
Last observed
3 July 2026
Residual RMS
0.62 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
3 July 2026

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
25.2

Discovery & classification

Aten Near-Earth Object

Close approaches 78 on record

Flyby geometry
Ecliptic flyby of 2026 MB at 2027-02-13 16:53 UTC Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2027-02-13 16:53 UTC close approach of 2026 MB. Catalogue miss distance 62.2 LD · 2.39 × 10⁷ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2027-02-10 to 2027-02-16, 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. At closest approach the object is north of the ecliptic. The path is a geocentric ecliptic ephemeris from JPL Horizons. The inset is a heliocentric view and is approximate. Sun 62.2 LD · 2.39 × 10⁷ km 2027-02-13 16:53 UTC Earth Moon Heliocentric, approximate

Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2027-02-13 16:53 UTC close approach of 2026 MB. Catalogue miss distance 62.2 LD · 2.39 × 10⁷ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2027-02-10 to 2027-02-16, 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. At closest approach the object is north 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
2027-02-13 16:53:00 Earth 0.1598 AU 62.2 LD 5.5 km/s
2027-08-08 22:47:00 Earth 0.1137 AU 44.3 LD 4.3 km/s
2027-12-19 01:00:00 Earth 0.1371 AU 53.4 LD 5.1 km/s
2028-10-10 18:22:00 Earth 0.1175 AU 45.7 LD 5.9 km/s
2031-11-20 20:24:00 Venus 0.1134 AU 44.1 LD 2 km/s
2052-06-05 23:18:00 Earth 0.0723 AU 28.1 LD 4.3 km/s
2053-02-14 13:16:00 Earth 0.1599 AU 62.2 LD 5.5 km/s
2053-08-07 00:19:00 Earth 0.1135 AU 44.2 LD 4.3 km/s
2053-12-19 21:37:00 Earth 0.1379 AU 53.6 LD 5.1 km/s
2054-01-11 06:14:00 Venus 0.116 AU 45.1 LD 1.9 km/s

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

Sources