Markfisher

Key Facts

• Categorized as a Outer Main-belt Asteroid
• Comparable in size to the island of Manhattan (4.38 km diameter)
• Not a Near Earth Object
• Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
• See orbit simulation

Overview

Markfisher is a mid-sized asteroid that orbits between Mars and Jupiter in the outer reaches of the main asteroid belt. NASA JPL has not classified Markfisher as potentially hazardous because its orbit does not bring it close to Earth.

Markfisher orbits the sun every 2,110 days (5.78 years), coming as close as 2.65 AU and reaching as far as 3.78 AU from the sun. Markfisher is about 4.4 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the island of Manhattan.

No Close Approaches

Markfisher's orbit is 1.71 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

Markfisher's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Jan. 29, 1995. It was last officially observed on Feb. 10, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 548 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 Markfisher:

• 300 Geraldina (A890 TB)
• 325 Heidelberga (A892 EA)
• 381 Myrrha (A894 AC)

References

• JPL Small Body Database
• Mission Design
• Sky Finder Chart

Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of Markfisher 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.

Size Rendering

The above comparison is an artistic rendering that uses available data on the diameter of Markfisher to create an approximate landscape rendering with Mount Everest in the background. This approximation is built for full-resolution desktop browsers. Shape, color, and texture of asteroid are imagined.