Key Facts

Overview

Donnashirley is a mid-sized asteroid with an orbit that crosses the orbit of Mars. NASA JPL has not classified Donnashirley as potentially hazardous because its orbit does not bring it close to Earth.

Donnashirley orbits the sun every 1,260 days (3.45 years), coming as close as 1.51 AU and reaching as far as 3.05 AU from the sun. Donnashirley is about 2.6 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to Mount Everest.

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

No Close Approaches

Donnashirley's orbit is 0.63 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

Donnashirley's orbit is determined by observations dating back to June 8, 1975. It was last officially observed on May 10, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 1,800 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 Donnashirley:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 2.281 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.3362
  • Inclination: 21.73°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 3.36°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 62.64°
  • Mean Anomaly: 176.58°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 2.60000 km
  • Magnitude: 14.69
  • Albedo: 0.380
  • Spectral type (SMASS): S

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 1,260 days (3.45 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 19.69 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 3.05 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 1.51 AU
  • Approx. Composition: and .

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of Donnashirley 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.

Size Rendering

The above comparison is an artistic rendering that uses available data on the diameter of Donnashirley to create an approximate landscape rendering with Mount Everest in the background. This approximation is built for full-resolution desktop browsers. Shape, color, and texture of asteroid are imagined.