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Asteroid Near-Earth

2020 QV6

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(2020 QV6)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
0.318 AU
True anomaly
2.2°
Distance from Earth
1.309 AU
As of
21 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 — 0.995 AU from the Sun Earth 2020 QV6 — 0.318 AU from the Sun 2020 QV6
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. 2020 QV6 is 1.309 AU from Earth today (10.9 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
13h 48m 59s
Declination
-09° 10′ 34″
Constellation
Virgo
Distance from Earth
1.31 AU
Elongation from the Sun
2.02° — 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
0.932 AU
Eccentricity
0.6588
Inclination
11.23°
Orbital period
328.5 days
Perihelion
0.318 AU
Aphelion
1.546 AU
Longitude of ascending node
162.22°
Argument of periapsis
36.54°
Epoch · J2000
2461200.5
Orbit class · ATE
Aten
Earth MOID · 9.0 LD
0.0233 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
6.209

Orbit quality

Orbit very well determined (uncertainty code 1).

Observations used
181
Data arc
8.92 years
First observed
10 October 2012
Last observed
10 September 2021
Residual RMS
0.43 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
11 September 2021

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
22.38

Discovery & classification

Aten Near-Earth Object

Close approaches 228 on record

Flyby geometry
Ecliptic flyby of 2020 QV6 at 2029-08-28 02:48 UTC Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2029-08-28 02:48 UTC close approach of 2020 QV6. Catalogue miss distance 19.3 LD · 7.4 × 10⁶ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2029-08-25 to 2029-08-31, 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 approximate: a two-body Kepler propagation of the catalogue orbital elements, not a numerical integration. The Moon’s position is approximate. The inset is a heliocentric view and is approximate. approximate Sun 26 Aug 30 Aug 19.3 LD · 7.4 × 10⁶ km 2029-08-28 02:48 UTC Earth Moon Heliocentric, approximate

Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2029-08-28 02:48 UTC close approach of 2020 QV6. Catalogue miss distance 19.3 LD · 7.4 × 10⁶ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2029-08-25 to 2029-08-31, 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 approximate: a two-body Kepler propagation of the catalogue orbital elements, not a numerical integration. The Moon’s position is approximate. The inset is a heliocentric view and is approximate.

When (UTC) Body Distance Lunar distances Relative speed
2028-08-02 12:21:00 Merc 0.0438 AU 17.1 LD 31.7 km/s
2028-08-02 12:21:00 Mercury 0.0438 AU 17.1 LD 31.7 km/s
2029-08-28 02:48:00 Earth 0.0495 AU 19.3 LD 19.9 km/s
2030-09-18 22:31:00 Earth 0.4757 AU 185.1 LD 15.5 km/s
2031-03-20 07:31:00 Venus 0.1446 AU 56.3 LD 24.1 km/s
2032-11-23 01:56:00 Earth 0.3429 AU 133.5 LD 14.5 km/s
2033-11-15 18:00:00 Earth 0.3451 AU 134.3 LD 29.9 km/s
2037-09-16 19:01:00 Earth 0.4695 AU 182.7 LD 36.2 km/s
2038-08-27 14:33:00 Earth 0.0964 AU 37.5 LD 18.6 km/s
2039-09-22 03:12:00 Earth 0.496 AU 193.0 LD 15.7 km/s

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

Sources