Key Facts

Overview

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

Hekatostos orbits the sun every 1,560 days (4.27 years), coming as close as 2.29 AU and reaching as far as 2.99 AU from the sun. Hekatostos is about 29.3 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the city of Indianapolis.

The rotation of Hekatostos has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 20.61 hours.

No Close Approaches

Hekatostos's orbit is 1.31 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

Hekatostos's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Dec. 4, 1958. It was last officially observed on March 6, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 4,046 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 Hekatostos:

References

Search

   or view a random object

Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 2.636 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.1327
  • Inclination: 11.85°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 85.1°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 316.25°
  • Mean Anomaly: 62.06°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 29.28000 km
  • Magnitude: 11.86
  • Albedo: 0.0622

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 1,560 days (4.27 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 18.38 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 2.99 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 2.29 AU
  • Rotation Period: 20.61 hours

Map Comparison

Click to load map

Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of Hekatostos 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.