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public Observing fromLocation: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
north SunriseRise: 6:46  
clear_day Transit: 12:51  
SunsetSet: 18:55 south
sunny DaytimeWhat's Visible Now
Dwarf Planets and Asteroids » 

Asteroid 1979 XB

Altitude: -25.3°   Azimuth: 116.2°   Direction: East-South-East

Asteroid 1979 XB is currently in the constellation of Scorpius. The current Right Ascension of Asteroid 1979 XB is 17h 22m 16s and the Declination is -35° 37’ 36” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt). The current magnitude of Asteroid 1979 XB is 22.94 (JPL).

17h 22m 16s
-35° 37’ 36”
Scorpius
22.94

Today's rise, transit and set times of Asteroid 1979 XB from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Azimuth: 125.6°
Max altitude: 2.9°
Azimuth: 234.4°
  • 1979 XB is below the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.
  • Given its current magnitude, 1979 XB is visible only through long exposure photography.
  • Go to interactive sky chart

If you need to access this information frequently for your observations, you can create a simple customized Quick Access page, so that you can easily bookmark it in your browser favorites or add a shortcut to your mobile phones' home screen.

Available Resources

Asteroid 1979 XB Position and Finder Charts

Below we provide Asteroid 1979 XB finder charts showing where the object is right now in the sky with respect to the brightest stars. The first finder chart has a field of view of 50 degrees, while the second one has a field of view of 10 degrees. Click on each finder chart to access a full screen interactive Online Planetarium.

Finder chart of 1979 XB in Scorpius on September,23 2023
Map showing Asteroid 1979 XB in Scorpius on September, 23 2023
Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View fullscreen
Finder chart of 1979 XB
Map showing Asteroid 1979 XB in Scorpius on September, 23 2023
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
View fullscreen

Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Asteroid 1979 XB is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.

1979 XB
RA: 17h 22m 16s
Dec: -35° 37’ 36”
Deep sky finder chart for Asteroid 1979 XB
Field of view: 60x40 arcmins
View fullscreen

Also check out Where is Asteroid 1979 XB?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Asteroid 1979 XB in the sky and additional links to sky charts.

Asteroid 1979 XB Distance from Earth

The distance of Asteroid 1979 XB from Earth is currently 295,963,905 kilometers, equivalent to 1.978397 Astronomical Units. Light takes 16 minutes and 27.2293 seconds to travel from Asteroid 1979 XB and arrive to us.

295,963,905
1.978397
16 minutes and 27.2293 seconds

The following chart shows the distance of Asteroid 1979 XB from Earth as a function of time. In the chart the distance data is measured in Astronomical Units and sampled with an interval of 1 day.

Chart of the distance of Asteroid 1979 XB from Earth in Astronomical Units (au)

The value of the reported distance might be somewhat inaccurate around the times of closest approach for objects passing extremely close to Earth. The value of the distance of 1979 XB from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.

Closest Approach of Asteroid 1979 XB to Earth

Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Asteroid 1979 XB to Earth happens on Wed Dec 10 2092 at a distance of 0.062426 Astronomical Units, or 9,338,740 kilometers:

Wed Dec 10 2092
9,338,740
0.062426

NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.

Asteroid 1979 XB Brightness and Light Curve

The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Asteroid 1979 XB, according to the most recent ephemerides data. Magnitude data is sampled with a 2 days interval and there might be inaccuracies for objects changing brightness very rapidly during the course of a few days. For comets there could be large discrepancies between the observed and predicted brightness because of their highly dynamic behaviour.

Chart of the magnitude of Asteroid 1979 XB as a function of time

Asteroid 1979 XB Orbital Elements

The following table lists the orbital elements of Asteroid 1979 XB at epoch 13 December 1979 00:00 UTC (JD: 2444221.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database

Element Symbol Value
Orbit eccentricity e 0.70844951
Orbit inclination i 24.73412122°
Perihelion distance q 0.64959947 AU
97,178,698 km
Aphelion distance Q 3.80657184 AU
569,455,043 km
Semi-major axis a 2.22808566 AU
333,316,871 km
Orbital period period 3.3259 years
1,214.7761 days
Date of perihelion transit Tp 1980-Jan-29 04:00:26
2,444,267.6670 JD
Next perihelion transit 1983-May-27 22:38
2,445,482.4431 JD
Argument of perihelion peri 75.579898280515°
Longitude of the ascending node node 86.055503094738°
Mean anomaly M 346.31837437011°
Mean motion n 0.29635090°/day

Visualization of Asteroid 1979 XB Orbit

This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Asteroid 1979 XB with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Asteroid 1979 XB and the planets along their orbits in this diagram accurately represents the current configuration of the objects in the Solar System. This is an experimental feature and it requires a WebGL enabled browser. Please provide us feedback!

Orbit Diagram of Asteroid 1979 XB
View Asteroid 1979 XB in the 3D Solar System Simulator

Asteroid 1979 XB 15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of Asteroid 1979 XB computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Asteroid 1979 XB in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.

Date Right AscensionR.A. DeclinationDec. MagnitudeMag Constellation
2023 Sep 16 17h 08m 04s -35° 16’ 26” 22.74 Scorpius
2023 Sep 17 17h 09m 59s -35° 19’ 40” 22.76 Scorpius
2023 Sep 18 17h 11m 53s -35° 22’ 46” 22.79 Scorpius
2023 Sep 19 17h 13m 46s -35° 25’ 45” 22.82 Scorpius
2023 Sep 20 17h 15m 41s -35° 28’ 36” 22.85 Scorpius
2023 Sep 21 17h 17m 35s -35° 31’ 19” 22.88 Scorpius
2023 Sep 22 17h 19m 27s -35° 33’ 56” 22.90 Scorpius
2023 Sep 23 17h 21m 21s -35° 36’ 24” 22.93 Scorpius
2023 Sep 24 17h 23m 16s -35° 38’ 47” 22.96 Scorpius
2023 Sep 25 17h 25m 09s -35° 41’ 02” 22.98 Scorpius
2023 Sep 26 17h 27m 03s -35° 43’ 10” 23.01 Scorpius
2023 Sep 27 17h 28m 57s -35° 45’ 11” 23.03 Scorpius
2023 Sep 28 17h 30m 51s -35° 47’ 07” 23.06 Scorpius
2023 Sep 29 17h 32m 44s -35° 48’ 55” 23.08 Scorpius