About 2001 QJ96
2001 QJ96 is an uncommon neo. It swings within 0.323 AU of the Sun at perihelion.
An Apollo-class object: its orbit is wider than Earth's but crosses it. Most known Earth-crossers belong to this family.
Uncommon neo 27 EP
2001 QJ96
Position computed live · sbdb
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Live ephemeris
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Score breakdown
· 4 badgesUncommon 34 pts → Rare
- Passes within two lunar distances of Earth's orbit +18
- Near-Earth object +5
- Apollo: crosses Earth's orbit +4
- Catalogue designation only +0
Total score 27
7 more points to reach Rare.
Badges
- Near-Earth object · +5
- Catalogue designation only
- Apollo: crosses Earth's orbit · +4
- Passes within two lunar distances of Earth's orbit · +18
Trivia
What it actually is
- Its orbit family. An Apollo-class object: its orbit is wider than Earth's but crosses it. Most known Earth-crossers belong to this family.
- Closest approach. At its nearest it comes within 0.32 AU of the Sun — inside the orbit of Mercury.
- One lap. A single orbit around the Sun takes it about 2 years.
- How far it roams. Its orbit swings between 0.32 and 2.86 AU from the Sun.
Sense of scale
- Sense of scale. In everyday terms it is about 1.2 football pitches across.
Standing on it
- Sunlight there. At closest approach the Sun beats down about 9.6 times harder than it ever does on Earth.
- Don't jump. Escape velocity here is only around 0.08 m/s. A determined jump would launch you off it and into your own orbit around the Sun.
By the numbers
- Estimated size. Nobody has measured its size directly. Assuming it reflects light like a typical asteroid, its brightness implies something roughly 125 metres across.
Properties
- aphelion au
- 2.86
- designation
- 2001 QJ96
- eccentricity
- 0.7971
- full name
- (2001 QJ96)
- h mag
- 22.27
- inclination
- 5.87
- mean motion deg day
- 0.4905
- moid au
- 0.0005
- name
- 2001 QJ96
- number only
- yes
- orbit class
- APO
- perihelion au
- 0.323
- semi major au
- 1.592
How to see it
Like any astronomical target, 2001 QJ96 is best seen from a dark site away from city lights, and when it is above the horizon depends on your latitude and the time of year. Because it moves against the background stars, the live position panel on this page tracks where it is right now. The visibility panel above works out tonight's viewing window for your saved location.
Why 2001 QJ96 is an uncommon neo
2001 QJ96 scores 27 points on Spacedle's rarity scale, which places it in the uncommon tier. Another 7 points would lift it into a rarer tier.
That score comes from 4 science badges — Near-Earth object, Catalogue designation only, Apollo: crosses Earth's orbit and Passes within two lunar distances of Earth's orbit — each earned for a real, measurable property of the object. Rarity on Spacedle is never random: the more remarkable an object's astrophysics, the more badges it collects, the higher it scores, and the rarer it ranks.