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A Complete Guide to the Solar System and the Night Sky
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public Observing fromLocation: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt
north SunriseRise: 7:47  
clear_day Transit: 11:49  
SunsetSet: 15:50 south
sunny DaytimeWhat's Visible Now?
Dwarf Planets and Asteroids » 

Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139)

Altitude: 27.8°   Azimuth: 253.0°   Direction: West-South-West

Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) is currently in the constellation of Leo.

The current Right Ascension of Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) is 10h 38m 19s and the Declination is +11° 45’ 11” (topocentric coordinates computed for the selected location: Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt). The current magnitude of Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) is 22.30 (JPL).

10h 38m 19s
+11° 45’ 11”
Leo
22.30

Today's rise, transit and set times of Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Azimuth: 78.3°
Max altitude: 50.3°
Azimuth: 281.8°
  • 288P (2006 VW139) is above the horizon from Greenwich, United Kingdom edit_location_alt.
  • Right now it is placed in the West-South-West direction at an altitude of 28° above the horizon.
  • Given its current magnitude, 288P (2006 VW139) 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 288P (2006 VW139) Position and Finder Charts

Below we provide Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) 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 288P (2006 VW139) in Leo on December,05 2023
Map showing Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) in Leo on December, 05 2023
Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View fullscreen
Finder chart of 288P (2006 VW139)
Map showing Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) in Leo on December, 05 2023
Field of view: 10x6 degrees
View fullscreen

Higher precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.

288P (2006 VW139)
RA: 10h 38m 19s
Dec: +11° 45’ 11”
Deep sky finder chart for Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139)
Field of view: 60x40 arcmins
View fullscreen

Also check out Where is Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139)?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) in the sky and additional links to sky charts.

Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) Distance from Earth

The distance of Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) from Earth is currently 475,994,616 kilometers, equivalent to 3.181827 Astronomical Units. Light takes 26 minutes and 27.7471 seconds to travel from Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) and arrive to us.

475,994,616
3.181827
26 minutes and 27.7471 seconds

The following chart shows the distance of Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) 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 288P (2006 VW139) 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 288P (2006 VW139) from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.

Closest Approach of Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) to Earth

Between 1 January 2013 and 30 December 2100, the closest approach of Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) to Earth happens on Sun Sep 11 2016 at a distance of 1.449080 Astronomical Units, or 216,779,305 kilometers:

Sun Sep 11 2016
216,779,305
1.449080

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

Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) Brightness and Light Curve

The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139), 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 288P (2006 VW139) as a function of time

Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) Orbital Elements

The following table lists the orbital elements of Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) at epoch 24 February 2023 00:00 UTC (JD: 2460000.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database

Element Symbol Value
Orbit eccentricity e 0.20050867
Orbit inclination i 3.23837211°
Perihelion distance q 2.43700650 AU
364,570,984 km
Aphelion distance Q 3.65938604 AU
547,436,360 km
Semi-major axis a 3.04819627 AU
456,003,672 km
Orbital period period 5.3220 years
1,943.8503 days
Date of perihelion transit Tp 2022-Mar-01 15:23:32
2,459,640.1413 JD
Next perihelion transit 2027-Jun-27 11:47
2,461,583.9917 JD
Argument of perihelion peri 280.20443615837°
Longitude of the ascending node node 83.124333919006°
Mean anomaly M 66.738223595015°
Mean motion n 0.18519945°/day

Visualization of Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) Orbit

This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) 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 288P (2006 VW139)
View Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) in the 3D Solar System Simulator

Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) 15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Asteroid 288P (2006 VW139) in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.

Date Right AscensionR.A. DeclinationDec. MagnitudeMag Constellation
2023 Nov 28 10h 34m 41s +11° 58’ 00” 22.36 Leo
2023 Nov 29 10h 35m 13s +11° 55’ 58” 22.36 Leo
2023 Nov 30 10h 35m 44s +11° 54’ 02” 22.35 Leo
2023 Dec 01 10h 36m 15s +11° 52’ 10” 22.34 Leo
2023 Dec 02 10h 36m 46s +11° 50’ 26” 22.33 Leo
2023 Dec 03 10h 37m 14s +11° 48’ 47” 22.32 Leo
2023 Dec 04 10h 37m 41s +11° 47’ 13” 22.31 Leo
2023 Dec 05 10h 38m 08s +11° 45’ 47” 22.30 Leo
2023 Dec 06 10h 38m 35s +11° 44’ 26” 22.29 Leo
2023 Dec 07 10h 38m 58s +11° 43’ 12” 22.28 Leo
2023 Dec 08 10h 39m 23s +11° 42’ 03” 22.27 Leo
2023 Dec 09 10h 39m 46s +11° 41’ 02” 22.26 Leo
2023 Dec 10 10h 40m 06s +11° 40’ 06” 22.25 Leo
2023 Dec 11 10h 40m 27s +11° 39’ 19” 22.24 Leo