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Asteroid Near-Earth

2017 XS

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(2017 XS)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
0.64 AU
True anomaly
285.92°
Distance from Earth
1.626 AU
As of
16 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 2017 XS — 0.64 AU from the Sun 2017 XS
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. 2017 XS is 1.626 AU from Earth today (13.5 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
13h 35m 40s
Declination
-14° 22′ 22″
Constellation
Virgo
Distance from Earth
1.62 AU
Elongation from the Sun
5.44° — too close to the Sun to observe

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
0.793 AU
Eccentricity
0.3418
Inclination
14.86°
Orbital period
258 days
Perihelion
0.522 AU
Aphelion
1.064 AU
Longitude of ascending node
257.36°
Argument of periapsis
27.9°
Epoch · J2000
2461200.5
Orbit class · ATE
Aten
Earth MOID · 5.1 LD
0.0132 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
7.271

Orbit quality

Orbit poorly determined (uncertainty code 6).

Observations used
246
Data arc
60 days
First observed
7 December 2017
Last observed
5 February 2018
Residual RMS
0.42 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
15 April 2021

Physical properties

Rotation period
6.38 hours

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
22.7

Discovery & classification

Aten Near-Earth Object

Close approaches 218 on record

Flyby geometry
Ecliptic flyby of 2017 XS at 2027-08-11 03:45 UTC Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2027-08-11 03:45 UTC close approach of 2017 XS. Catalogue miss distance 193.6 LD · 7.44 × 10⁷ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2027-08-08 to 2027-08-14, 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 193.6 LD · 7.44 × 10⁷ km 2027-08-11 03:45 UTC Earth Moon Heliocentric, approximate

Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2027-08-11 03:45 UTC close approach of 2017 XS. Catalogue miss distance 193.6 LD · 7.44 × 10⁷ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2027-08-08 to 2027-08-14, 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
2027-08-11 03:45:00 Earth 0.4976 AU 193.6 LD 17.5 km/s
2028-01-29 18:21:00 Earth 0.4083 AU 158.9 LD 19.4 km/s
2029-12-06 22:01:00 Earth 0.021 AU 8.2 LD 11.2 km/s
2030-04-24 05:45:00 Earth 0.3976 AU 154.7 LD 13 km/s
2031-01-29 04:03:00 Mercury 0.0983 AU 38.2 LD 17 km/s
2031-01-29 04:03:00 Merc 0.0983 AU 38.2 LD 17 km/s
2035-01-08 04:19:00 Earth 0.1802 AU 70.1 LD 9.6 km/s
2036-12-14 06:32:00 Earth 0.4242 AU 165.1 LD 23.3 km/s
2037-06-10 10:32:00 Earth 0.4773 AU 185.8 LD 19.5 km/s
2039-08-23 15:10:00 Earth 0.483 AU 188.0 LD 15.3 km/s

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

Sources