Key Facts

Overview

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

Adrastea orbits the sun every 1,870 days (5.12 years), coming as close as 2.27 AU and reaching as far as 3.67 AU from the sun. Adrastea is about 37.6 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the city of Houston.

The rotation of Adrastea has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 18.47 hours.

No Close Approaches

Adrastea's orbit is 1.27 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

Adrastea's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Aug. 20, 1884. It was last officially observed on Dec. 1, 2022. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 5,066 observations used to determine its orbit.

Scientists have been able to determine this object's shape:

View asteroid Adrastea in 3D.

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 Adrastea:

References

Search

   or view a random object

Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 2.967 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.2364
  • Inclination: 6.18°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 180.62°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 209.63°
  • Mean Anomaly: 15.77°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 37.60900 km
  • Magnitude: 10.55
  • Albedo: 0.095

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 1,870 days (5.12 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 17.26 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 3.67 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 2.27 AU
  • Rotation Period: 18.47 hours

Map Comparison

Click to load map

Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of Adrastea 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.