Key Facts

Overview

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

Hilarydownes orbits the sun every 1,520 days (4.16 years), coming as close as 1.84 AU and reaching as far as 3.35 AU from the sun. Hilarydownes is about 10.0 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the city of Boston.

The rotation of Hilarydownes has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 10.69 hours.

No Close Approaches

Hilarydownes's orbit is 0.86 AU from Earth's orbit at its closest point. This means that there is a very 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

Hilarydownes's orbit is determined by observations dating back to March 24, 1955. It was last officially observed on Aug. 5, 2022. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 2,309 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 Hilarydownes:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 2.593 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.2901
  • Inclination: 11.2°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 178.3°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 103.83°
  • Mean Anomaly: 54.64°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 10.01500 km
  • Magnitude: 13.98
  • Albedo: 0.097

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 1,520 days (4.16 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 18.56 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 3.35 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 1.84 AU
  • Rotation Period: 10.69 hours

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of Hilarydownes 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.