Key Facts
- Categorized as a Main-belt Asteroid
- Comparable in size to the city of New York (34.60 km diameter)
- Not a Near Earth Object
- Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
- See orbit simulation
Overview
Sorga is a large asteroid orbiting between Mars and Jupiter in the main portion of the asteroid belt. NASA JPL has not classified Sorga as potentially hazardous because its orbit does not bring it close to Earth.
Sorga orbits the sun every 1,890 days (5.17 years), coming as close as 2.56 AU and reaching as far as 3.42 AU from the sun. Sorga is about 34.6 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, comparable in size to the city of New York.
The rotation of Sorga has been observed. It completes a rotation on its axis every 8.18 hours.
Sorga's spectral type CD (Tholen) / Xe (SMASSII) indicates that it is likely to contain iron, nickel, and cobalt.
No Close Approaches
Sorga's orbit is 1.58 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
Sorga's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Jan. 30, 1916. It was last officially observed on Jan. 11, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 5,146 observations used to determine its orbit.
Scientists have been able to determine this object's shape:
View asteroid Sorga 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 Sorga:References
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or view a random objectOrbital Elements
- Epoch: 2460200.5 JD
- Semi-major axis: 2.988 AU
- Eccentricity: 0.1431
- Inclination: 10.7°
- Longitude of Ascending Node: 46.09°
- Argument of Periapsis: 288.24°
- Mean Anomaly: 70.43°
Physical Characteristics
- Diameter: 34.59700 km
- Magnitude: 9.79
- Albedo: 0.209
- Spectral type (Tholen): CD
- Spectral type (SMASS): Xe
Derived Characteristics
- Orbit Period: 1,890 days (5.17 years)
- Avg. Orbit Speed: 17.20 km/s
- Aphelion Distance: 3.42 AU
- Perihelion Distance: 2.56 AU
- Rotation Period: 8.18 hours
- Approx. Composition: iron, nickel, and cobalt.
Map Comparison
Orbit Simulation
Sky Map
The position of Sorga 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.