Skip to content
Public Universe
Asteroid Near-Earth

2023 VZ2

Add to an observing list or journal →

(2023 VZ2)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
0.786 AU
True anomaly
331.37°
Distance from Earth
1.44 AU
As of
22 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 2023 VZ2 — 0.786 AU from the Sun 2023 VZ2
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. 2023 VZ2 is 1.44 AU from Earth today (12.0 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
11h 42m 32s
Declination
-09° 44′ 51″
Constellation
Crater
Distance from Earth
1.44 AU
Elongation from the Sun
31.33° — near the Sun — look low at dusk or dawn

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
0.942 AU
Eccentricity
0.1819
Inclination
19.89°
Orbital period
334.1 days
Perihelion
0.771 AU
Aphelion
1.114 AU
Longitude of ascending node
224.85°
Argument of periapsis
301.42°
Epoch · J2000
2461200.5
Orbit class · ATE
Aten
Earth MOID · 5.3 LD
0.0137 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
6.309

Orbit quality

Orbit poorly determined (uncertainty code 6).

Observations used
101
Data arc
2 days
First observed
7 November 2023
Last observed
9 November 2023
Residual RMS
0.42 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
10 November 2023

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
26.89

Discovery & classification

Aten Near-Earth Object

Close approaches 57 on record

Flyby geometry
Ecliptic flyby of 2023 VZ2 at 2033-05-28 23:17 UTC Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2033-05-28 23:17 UTC close approach of 2023 VZ2. Catalogue miss distance 74.2 LD · 2.85 × 10⁷ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2033-05-25 to 2033-05-31, 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 a geocentric ecliptic ephemeris from JPL Horizons. The inset is a heliocentric view and is approximate. Sun 74.2 LD · 2.85 × 10⁷ km 2033-05-28 23:17 UTC Earth Moon Heliocentric, approximate

Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2033-05-28 23:17 UTC close approach of 2023 VZ2. Catalogue miss distance 74.2 LD · 2.85 × 10⁷ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2033-05-25 to 2033-05-31, 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 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
2033-05-28 23:17:00 Earth 0.1906 AU 74.2 LD 13 km/s
2033-10-13 00:34:00 Earth 0.3563 AU 138.7 LD 10.9 km/s
2034-03-19 05:38:00 Earth 0.3279 AU 127.6 LD 11.2 km/s
2034-11-06 17:45:00 Earth 0.1249 AU 48.6 LD 13.2 km/s
2040-09-02 03:30:00 Venus 0.1307 AU 50.9 LD 15.4 km/s
2042-07-09 00:14:00 Venus 0.1151 AU 44.8 LD 14 km/s
2043-07-05 01:56:00 Earth 0.4727 AU 184.0 LD 19.5 km/s
2044-05-15 05:01:00 Earth 0.1661 AU 64.6 LD 12.3 km/s
2044-10-29 16:47:00 Earth 0.2574 AU 100.2 LD 10.6 km/s
2045-11-03 06:41:00 Earth 0.2453 AU 95.5 LD 15.9 km/s

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

Sources