Hekla

Key Facts

• Categorized as a Inner Main-belt Asteroid
• Comparable in size to the U.S. Pentagon
• Not a Near Earth Object
• Not a Potentially Hazardous Object
• See orbit simulation

Overview

Hekla is a mid-sized asteroid orbiting between Mars and Jupiter within the inner portion of the asteroid belt. NASA JPL has not classified Hekla as potentially hazardous because its orbit does not bring it close to Earth.

Hekla orbits the sun every 976 days (2.67 years), coming as close as 1.77 AU and reaching as far as 2.08 AU from the sun. Based on its brightness and the way it reflects light, Hekla is probably between 1.166 to 2.606 kilometers in diameter, making it larger than 99% of asteroids, very roughly comparable in size to the U.S. Pentagon.

No Close Approaches

Hekla's orbit is 0.84 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

Hekla's orbit is determined by observations dating back to Sept. 24, 1973. It was last officially observed on May 3, 2023. The IAU Minor Planet Center records 1,329 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 Hekla:

• 1103 Sequoia (1928 VB)
• 1221 Amor (1932 EA1)
• 1750 Eckert (1950 NA1)

References

• JPL Small Body Database
• Mission Design
• Sky Finder Chart

Orbit Simulation

Sky Map

The position of Hekla 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 Hekla 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.