Key Facts

Overview

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

Ragazza orbits the sun every 1,710 days (4.68 years), coming as close as 2.33 AU and reaching as far as 3.27 AU from the sun. Ragazza is about 8.8 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the San Francisco Bay.

The rotation of Ragazza has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 210.90 hours.

Ragazza's spectral type None (Tholen) / S (SMASSII) indicates that it is likely to contain and .

No Close Approaches

Ragazza's orbit is 1.34 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

Ragazza's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Dec. 2, 1962. It was last officially observed on Dec. 29, 2022. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 4,415 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 Ragazza:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 2.8 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.1686
  • Inclination: 10.17°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 50.85°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 349.76°
  • Mean Anomaly: 19.98°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 8.75000 km
  • Magnitude: 12.09
  • Albedo: 0.440
  • Spectral type (SMASS): S

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 1,710 days (4.68 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 17.81 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 3.27 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 2.33 AU
  • Rotation Period: 210.90 hours
  • Approx. Composition: and .

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of Ragazza 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.