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Asteroid Near-Earth

408982

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408982 (2002 SP)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
1.295 AU
True anomaly
202.81°
Distance from Earth
0.582 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 408982 — 1.295 AU from the Sun 408982
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. 408982 is 0.582 AU from Earth today (4.8 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
20h 57m 49s
Declination
-06° 55′ 14″
Constellation
Aquarius
Distance from Earth
0.59 AU
Elongation from the Sun
106.37° — well clear of the Sun

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
0.905 AU
Eccentricity
0.6004
Inclination
20.85°
Orbital period
314.2 days
Perihelion
0.361 AU
Aphelion
1.448 AU
Longitude of ascending node
350.87°
Argument of periapsis
169.43°
Epoch · J2000
2461200.5
Orbit class · ATE
Aten
Earth MOID · 76.0 LD
0.1953 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
6.376

Orbit quality

Orbit very well determined (uncertainty code 0).

Observations used
140
Data arc
24.05 years
First observed
21 September 2002
Last observed
9 October 2026
Residual RMS
0.54 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
10 October 2026

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
20.78

Discovery & classification

Discovered by
NEAT
Discovery date
20 September 2002
Discovery site
Palomar

Also known as 2002 SP

Aten Near-Earth Object

Close approaches 80 on record

Flyby geometry
Ecliptic flyby of 408982 at 2033-10-12 13:41 UTC Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2033-10-12 13:41 UTC close approach of 408982. Catalogue miss distance 77.7 LD · 2.99 × 10⁷ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2033-10-09 to 2033-10-15, with a mark at UTC midnights and an arrow for the direction of motion. The circle is the Moon’s mean orbit; the Moon is plotted at closest approach. A ray shows the Sun’s direction. The labelled distance is the full separation. The drawn radius is the part that lies in the ecliptic plane. At closest approach the object is north of the ecliptic. The path is a geocentric ecliptic ephemeris from JPL Horizons. The inset is a heliocentric view and is approximate. Sun 10 Oct 15 Oct 77.7 LD · 2.99 × 10⁷ km 2033-10-12 13:41 UTC Earth Moon Heliocentric, approximate

Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2033-10-12 13:41 UTC close approach of 408982. Catalogue miss distance 77.7 LD · 2.99 × 10⁷ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2033-10-09 to 2033-10-15, with a mark at UTC midnights and an arrow for the direction of motion. The circle is the Moon’s mean orbit; the Moon is plotted at closest approach. A ray shows the Sun’s direction. The labelled distance is the full separation. The drawn radius is the part that lies in the ecliptic plane. At closest approach the object is north of the ecliptic. The path is a geocentric ecliptic ephemeris from JPL Horizons. The inset is a heliocentric view and is approximate.

JPL Horizons

When (UTC) Body Distance Lunar distances Relative speed
2030-07-04 11:12:00 Merc 0.0251 AU 9.8 LD 26.3 km/s
2030-07-04 11:12:00 Mercury 0.0251 AU 9.8 LD 26.3 km/s
2033-10-12 13:41:00 Earth 0.1995 AU 77.7 LD 19.9 km/s
2036-07-11 19:01:00 Mercury 0.0228 AU 8.9 LD 26.1 km/s
2036-07-11 19:01:00 Merc 0.0228 AU 8.9 LD 26.1 km/s
2041-05-05 05:38:00 Mars 0.0481 AU 18.7 LD 13.6 km/s
2042-07-19 19:40:00 Merc 0.0277 AU 10.8 LD 26.6 km/s
2042-07-19 19:40:00 Mercury 0.0277 AU 10.8 LD 26.6 km/s
2048-07-26 17:11:00 Mercury 0.0365 AU 14.2 LD 27.4 km/s
2048-07-26 17:11:00 Merc 0.0365 AU 14.2 LD 27.4 km/s

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

Sources