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Asteroid Near-Earth

162004

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162004 (1991 VE)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
1.032 AU
True anomaly
218.76°
Distance from Earth
1.393 AU
As of
20 October 2026

Two-body Kepler propagation — accurate to ~0.1% for major planets over decades, less so for highly-perturbed bodies. Use JPL Horizons for high precision.

Sun Earth — 0.996 AU from the Sun Earth 162004 — 1.032 AU from the Sun 162004
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. 162004 is 1.393 AU from Earth today (11.6 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
10h 53m 52s
Declination
+11° 37′ 49″
Constellation
Leo
Distance from Earth
1.39 AU
Elongation from the Sun
47.68° — near the Sun — look low at dusk or dawn

Visible from both hemispheres.

From your location

See how high it is right now, whether it is up after civil twilight, and when it rises and sets where you are.

How do I find my coordinates?

Google Maps on a computer

  1. Right-click the spot where you'll be observing.
  2. The first line of the menu is the coordinates, e.g. 51.50722, -0.12758 — click it and they're copied.
  3. Paste them above.

Google Maps on a phone

  1. Press and hold the spot to drop a pin.
  2. The coordinates appear in the search bar (or on the pin's card) — tap to copy, then paste above.

A full Google Maps link works too, but the short maps.app.goo.gl share links don't carry coordinates — copy the numbers instead. We round to about a kilometre; that's all the sky calculation needs.

Know your what3words address? Paste it, e.g. ///filled.count.soap. This is optional — the three words are sent to what3words to convert them, and we don't store the address or the result.

Your location stays in your browser and is sent only for this calculation. Using a what3words address is optional; if you do, the three words go to what3words to be converted and we don't record them. Set a location first, then you can save an email alert for this object. See our privacy policy.

Two-body approximation, good to about a degree for the planets — enough to find the constellation and know whether it is up.

Orbital elements

Semi-major axis
0.891 AU
Eccentricity
0.6646
Inclination
7.22°
Orbital period
307.1 days
Perihelion
0.299 AU
Aphelion
1.483 AU
Longitude of ascending node
61.84°
Argument of periapsis
193.68°
Epoch · J2000
2461200.5
Orbit class · ATE
Aten
Earth MOID · 22.4 LD
0.0575 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
6.455

Orbit quality

Orbit very well determined (uncertainty code 0).

Observations used
1,890
Data arc
71.09 years
First observed
24 November 1954
Last observed
26 December 2025
Residual RMS
0.41 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
10 April 2026

Physical properties

Rotation period
13.49 hours

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
18.28

Discovery & classification

Discovered by
Helin, E. F., Lawrence, K. J.
Discovery date
3 November 1991
Discovery site
Palomar

Also known as 1991 VE · 1997 WP23

Aten Near-Earth Object

Close approaches 230 on record

When (UTC) Body Distance Lunar distances Relative speed
2026-12-07 02:36:00 Merc 0.0954 AU 37.1 LD 27 km/s
2026-12-07 02:36:00 Mercury 0.0954 AU 37.1 LD 27 km/s
2028-08-10 21:58:00 Merc 0.0579 AU 22.5 LD 29.9 km/s
2028-08-10 21:58:00 Mercury 0.0579 AU 22.5 LD 29.9 km/s
2030-04-16 14:53:00 Merc 0.017 AU 6.6 LD 34.6 km/s
2030-04-16 14:53:00 Mercury 0.017 AU 6.6 LD 34.6 km/s
2031-12-01 09:55:00 Venus 0.0505 AU 19.7 LD 25.8 km/s
2031-12-21 20:02:00 Merc 0.0307 AU 11.9 LD 39.8 km/s
2031-12-21 20:02:00 Mercury 0.0307 AU 11.9 LD 39.8 km/s
2032-12-06 07:00:00 Venus 0.0578 AU 22.5 LD 23.3 km/s

Next ten from today. 1 lunar distance = 384,400 km. Source: JPL close-approach data.

Sources