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Asteroid Near-Earth

2022 QU3

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(2022 QU3)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
0.552 AU
True anomaly
81.59°
Distance from Earth
1.454 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 2022 QU3 — 0.552 AU from the Sun 2022 QU3
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. 2022 QU3 is 1.454 AU from Earth today (12.1 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
14h 27m 24s
Declination
-12° 28′ 34″
Constellation
Libra
Distance from Earth
1.46 AU
Elongation from the Sun
15.37° — 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
0.727 AU
Eccentricity
0.439
Inclination
5.18°
Orbital period
226.5 days
Perihelion
0.408 AU
Aphelion
1.047 AU
Longitude of ascending node
152.65°
Argument of periapsis
9.95°
Epoch · J2000
2461200.5
Orbit class · ATE
Aten
Earth MOID · 4.0 LD
0.0102 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
7.824

Orbit quality

Orbit poorly determined (uncertainty code 7).

Observations used
44
Data arc
2 days
First observed
23 August 2022
Last observed
25 August 2022
Residual RMS
0.34 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
29 September 2026

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
26.84

Discovery & classification

Aten Near-Earth Object

Close approaches 159 on record

Flyby geometry
Ecliptic flyby of 2022 QU3 at 2027-09-25 04:52 UTC Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2027-09-25 04:52 UTC close approach of 2022 QU3. Catalogue miss distance 18.2 LD · 6.98 × 10⁶ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2027-09-22 to 2027-09-28, 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 south of the ecliptic. The path is a geocentric ecliptic ephemeris from JPL Horizons. The inset is a heliocentric view and is approximate. Sun 23 Sep 27 Sep 18.2 LD · 6.98 × 10⁶ km 2027-09-25 04:52 UTC Earth Moon Heliocentric, approximate

Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2027-09-25 04:52 UTC close approach of 2022 QU3. Catalogue miss distance 18.2 LD · 6.98 × 10⁶ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2027-09-22 to 2027-09-28, 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 south 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
2027-09-25 04:52:00 Earth 0.0466 AU 18.2 LD 9.2 km/s
2028-08-08 09:58:00 Merc 0.0314 AU 12.2 LD 12.5 km/s
2028-08-08 09:58:00 Mercury 0.0314 AU 12.2 LD 12.5 km/s
2035-08-14 13:17:00 Earth 0.09 AU 35.0 LD 11.8 km/s
2045-09-29 02:04:00 Earth 0.0948 AU 36.9 LD 11.3 km/s
2049-01-25 00:13:00 Merc 0.0729 AU 28.4 LD 15.9 km/s
2049-01-25 00:13:00 Mercury 0.0729 AU 28.4 LD 15.9 km/s
2052-01-19 13:16:00 Venus 0.1463 AU 56.9 LD 22.6 km/s
2052-09-01 10:19:00 Venus 0.1134 AU 44.1 LD 20.9 km/s
2053-04-15 05:29:00 Venus 0.0823 AU 32.0 LD 19.2 km/s

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

Sources