Key Facts

  • Categorized as a Jupiter Trojan
  • Comparable in size to the city of Philadelphia (17.64 km diameter)
  • Not a Near Earth Object
  • Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
  • See orbit simulation

Overview

68766 (2002 EN102) is a large asteroid that shares Jupiter's orbit around the sun. NASA JPL has not classified 2002 EN102 as potentially hazardous because its orbit does not bring it close to Earth.

2002 EN102 orbits the sun every 4,360 days (11.94 years), coming as close as 5.05 AU and reaching as far as 5.40 AU from the sun. 2002 EN102 is about 17.6 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the city of Philadelphia.

No Close Approaches

2002 EN102's orbit is 4.05 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

2002 EN102's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Sept. 12, 1996. It was last officially observed on Jan. 12, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 705 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 2002 EN102:

References

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Orbital Elements

  • Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
  • Semi-major axis: 5.222 AU
  • Eccentricity: 0.0333
  • Inclination: 11.31°
  • Longitude of Ascending Node: 201.94°
  • Argument of Periapsis: 64.51°
  • Mean Anomaly: 194.73°

Physical Characteristics

  • Diameter: 17.64400 km
  • Magnitude: 12.76
  • Albedo: 0.062

Derived Characteristics

  • Orbit Period: 4,360 days (11.94 years)
  • Avg. Orbit Speed: 13.03 km/s
  • Aphelion Distance: 5.40 AU
  • Perihelion Distance: 5.05 AU

Map Comparison

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Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of 68766 (2002 EN102) 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.