Key Facts

Overview

Nebraska is a large asteroid orbiting between Mars and Jupiter in the main portion of the asteroid belt. NASA JPL has not classified Nebraska as potentially hazardous because its orbit does not bring it close to Earth.

Nebraska orbits the sun every 1,790 days (4.90 years), coming as close as 2.35 AU and reaching as far as 3.43 AU from the sun. Nebraska is about 10.0 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the city of Boston.

The rotation of Nebraska has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 23.29 hours.

No Close Approaches

Nebraska's orbit is 1.35 AU from Earth's orbit at its closest point. This means that there is an extremely wide berth between this asteroid and Earth at all times.

Orbital simulations conducted by NASA JPL's CNEOS do not show any close approaches to Earth.

Images and Observations

Nebraska's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Oct. 2, 1986. It was last officially observed on June 23, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 3,512 observations used to determine its orbit.

Accessibility and Exploration

This asteroid is not considered a viable target for human exploration by the NHATS study.

Similar Objects

These objects have orbits that share similar characteristics to the orbit of Nebraska:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 2.889 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.1859
  • Inclination: 14.51°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 14.67°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 346.64°
  • Mean Anomaly: 190.78°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 10.02500 km
  • Magnitude: 12.43
  • Albedo: 0.232

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 1,790 days (4.90 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 17.56 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 3.43 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 2.35 AU
  • Rotation Period: 23.29 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of Nebraska is indicated by a ◯ pink circle. Note that the object may not be in your current field of view. Use the controls below to adjust position, location, and time.