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Asteroid Near-Earth

2026 QD

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(2026 QD)

Where is it now

Distance from Sun
1.031 AU
True anomaly
198.7°
Distance from Earth
0.462 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 2026 QD — 1.031 AU from the Sun 2026 QD
Seen from above the ecliptic, north up, to scale. Grid: Earth's orbit in blue. 2026 QD is 0.462 AU from Earth today (3.8 light-minutes).

In the sky

Right ascension
19h 10m 55s
Declination
-54° 01′ 57″
Constellation
Telescopium
Distance from Earth
0.47 AU
Elongation from the Sun
80.41° — 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
0.728 AU
Eccentricity
0.4882
Inclination
22.92°
Orbital period
226.9 days
Perihelion
0.373 AU
Aphelion
1.083 AU
Longitude of ascending node
145.15°
Argument of periapsis
17.99°
Epoch · J2000
2461200.5
Orbit class · ATE
Aten
Earth MOID · 6.8 LD
0.0176 AU
Tisserand (Jupiter)
7.749

Orbit quality

Orbit poorly determined (uncertainty code 7).

Observations used
51
Data arc
2 days
First observed
17 August 2026
Last observed
19 August 2026
Residual RMS
0.31 ″
Solution · Otto Matic
26 August 2026

Visual & observation

Absolute magnitude (H)
26.1

Discovery & classification

Aten Near-Earth Object

Close approaches 92 on record

Flyby geometry
Ecliptic flyby of 2026 QD at 2031-08-26 04:57 UTC Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2031-08-26 04:57 UTC close approach of 2026 QD. Catalogue miss distance 49.4 LD · 1.9 × 10⁷ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2031-08-23 to 2031-08-29, 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 49.4 LD · 1.9 × 10⁷ km 2031-08-26 04:57 UTC Earth Moon Heliocentric, approximate

Top-down view of the ecliptic, Earth at the centre, for the 2031-08-26 04:57 UTC close approach of 2026 QD. Catalogue miss distance 49.4 LD · 1.9 × 10⁷ km. The curve is the geocentric path from 2031-08-23 to 2031-08-29, 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
2030-09-30 03:18:00 Merc 0.0998 AU 38.8 LD 34.2 km/s
2030-09-30 03:18:00 Mercury 0.0998 AU 38.8 LD 34.2 km/s
2031-08-26 04:57:00 Earth 0.1268 AU 49.4 LD 13.1 km/s
2035-02-03 13:49:00 Mercury 0.0319 AU 12.4 LD 26 km/s
2035-02-03 13:49:00 Merc 0.0319 AU 12.4 LD 26 km/s
2044-08-15 13:16:00 Earth 0.0403 AU 15.7 LD 15.2 km/s
2046-11-21 18:05:00 Mercury 0.0109 AU 4.2 LD 27.3 km/s
2046-11-21 18:05:00 Merc 0.0109 AU 4.2 LD 27.3 km/s
2049-08-22 12:35:00 Earth 0.0968 AU 37.7 LD 13.3 km/s
2058-09-09 04:23:00 Merc 0.0375 AU 14.6 LD 29.2 km/s

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

Sources