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Asteroid Near-Earth

2021 PN26

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(2021 PN26)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
1.098 AU
True anomaly
195.24°
Distance from Earth
0.44 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 2021 PN26 — 1.098 AU from the Sun 2021 PN26
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. 2021 PN26 is 0.44 AU from Earth today (3.7 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
20h 43m 54s
Declination
-63° 26′ 15″
Constellation
Pavo
Distance from Earth
0.45 AU
Elongation from the Sun
90.32° — well clear of the Sun

Favours the southern hemisphere; low or below the horizon from far north.

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
0.729 AU
Eccentricity
0.5775
Inclination
20.34°
Orbital period
227.4 days
Perihelion
0.308 AU
Aphelion
1.15 AU
Longitude of ascending node
133.69°
Argument of periapsis
37.69°
Epoch · J2000
2461200.5
Orbit class · ATE
Aten
Earth MOID · 23.7 LD
0.061 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
7.709

Orbit quality

Orbit very well determined (uncertainty code 1).

Observations used
66
Data arc
5.05 years
First observed
11 August 2021
Last observed
28 August 2026
Residual RMS
0.52 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
29 August 2026

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
20.35

Discovery & classification

Aten Near-Earth Object

Close approaches 147 on record

Flyby geometry
Ecliptic flyby of 2021 PN26 at 2039-08-18 04:39 UTC Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2039-08-18 04:39 UTC close approach of 2021 PN26. Catalogue miss distance 58.0 LD · 2.23 × 10⁷ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2039-08-15 to 2039-08-21, 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. The path is a geocentric ecliptic ephemeris from JPL Horizons. The Moon’s position is approximate. The inset is a heliocentric view and is approximate. Sun 58.0 LD · 2.23 × 10⁷ km 2039-08-18 04:39 UTC Earth Moon Heliocentric, approximate

Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2039-08-18 04:39 UTC close approach of 2021 PN26. Catalogue miss distance 58.0 LD · 2.23 × 10⁷ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2039-08-15 to 2039-08-21, 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. The path is a geocentric ecliptic ephemeris from JPL Horizons. The Moon’s position is approximate. The inset is a heliocentric view and is approximate.

JPL Horizons

When (UTC) Body Distance Lunar distances Relative speed
2030-09-30 13:10:00 Mercury 0.0415 AU 16.1 LD 29.3 km/s
2030-09-30 13:10:00 Merc 0.0415 AU 16.1 LD 29.3 km/s
2038-03-22 22:24:00 Mercury 0.0797 AU 31.0 LD 27.9 km/s
2038-03-22 22:24:00 Merc 0.0797 AU 31.0 LD 27.9 km/s
2038-05-06 07:48:00 Venus 0.1276 AU 49.7 LD 19.4 km/s
2038-12-17 03:29:00 Venus 0.1034 AU 40.3 LD 21.2 km/s
2039-07-30 12:30:00 Venus 0.0978 AU 38.0 LD 23.1 km/s
2039-08-18 04:39:00 Earth 0.149 AU 58.0 LD 21.1 km/s
2040-03-12 06:49:00 Venus 0.1145 AU 44.6 LD 25.3 km/s
2040-10-24 07:32:00 Venus 0.1468 AU 57.1 LD 27.7 km/s

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

Sources