Skip to content
Public Universe
Asteroid Near-Earth

2003 UY12

Add to an observing list or journal →

(2003 UY12)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
1.118 AU
True anomaly
179.66°
Distance from Earth
0.4 AU
As of
15 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 — 0.997 AU from the Sun Earth 2003 UY12 — 1.118 AU from the Sun 2003 UY12
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. 2003 UY12 is 0.4 AU from Earth today (3.3 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
07h 16m 46s
Declination
+38° 54′ 50″
Constellation
Auriga
Distance from Earth
0.39 AU
Elongation from the Sun
97.38° — well clear of the Sun

Favours the northern hemisphere; low or below the horizon from far south.

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
0.701 AU
Eccentricity
0.5945
Inclination
16.4°
Orbital period
214.4 days
Perihelion
0.284 AU
Aphelion
1.118 AU
Longitude of ascending node
22.85°
Argument of periapsis
200.68°
Epoch · J2000
2461200.5
Orbit class · ATE
Aten
Earth MOID · 4.5 LD
0.0115 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
7.988

Orbit quality

Orbit very well determined (uncertainty code 1).

Observations used
93
Data arc
20.05 years
First observed
17 October 2003
Last observed
4 November 2023
Residual RMS
0.46 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
4 November 2023

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
23.27

Discovery & classification

Also known as 2003 US12 · 2013 UT8

Aten Near-Earth Object

Close approaches 344 on record

Flyby geometry
Ecliptic flyby of 2003 UY12 at 2026-11-25 17:31 UTC Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2026-11-25 17:31 UTC close approach of 2003 UY12. Catalogue miss distance 78.8 LD · 3.03 × 10⁷ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2026-11-22 to 2026-11-28, 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 23 Nov 78.8 LD · 3.03 × 10⁷ km 2026-11-25 17:31 UTC Earth Moon Heliocentric, approximate

Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2026-11-25 17:31 UTC close approach of 2003 UY12. Catalogue miss distance 78.8 LD · 3.03 × 10⁷ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2026-11-22 to 2026-11-28, 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
2026-11-25 17:31:00 Earth 0.2024 AU 78.8 LD 16.3 km/s
2027-10-22 03:07:00 Earth 0.349 AU 135.8 LD 27.5 km/s
2028-10-26 14:59:00 Mercury 0.0892 AU 34.7 LD 46.2 km/s
2028-10-26 14:59:00 Merc 0.0892 AU 34.7 LD 46.2 km/s
2029-11-19 03:23:00 Earth 0.4372 AU 170.1 LD 27.8 km/s
2030-08-23 07:46:00 Mercury 0.0703 AU 27.3 LD 37.3 km/s
2030-08-23 07:46:00 Merc 0.0703 AU 27.3 LD 37.3 km/s
2030-10-14 07:27:00 Earth 0.0179 AU 7.0 LD 16.5 km/s
2032-12-07 17:32:00 Mercury 0.0941 AU 36.6 LD 26.8 km/s
2032-12-07 17:32:00 Merc 0.0941 AU 36.6 LD 26.8 km/s

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

Sources