Key Facts

Overview

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

Transylvania orbits the sun every 1,960 days (5.37 years), coming as close as 2.16 AU and reaching as far as 3.96 AU from the sun. Transylvania is about 20.3 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the city of Indianapolis.

The rotation of Transylvania has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 144.20 hours.

No Close Approaches

Transylvania's orbit is 1.16 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

Transylvania's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Oct. 28, 1903. It was last officially observed on June 13, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 3,846 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 Transylvania:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 3.061 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.2937
  • Inclination: 3.86°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 229.88°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 148.64°
  • Mean Anomaly: 188.59°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 20.28800 km
  • Magnitude: 12.35
  • Albedo: 0.052

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 1,960 days (5.37 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 16.99 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 3.96 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 2.16 AU
  • Rotation Period: 144.20 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of Transylvania 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.