Asteroid 18 Melpomene
Asteroid 18 Melpomene Sky Charts and Coordinates
This is a simplified sky chart, showing where Asteroid 18 Melpomene is now with respect to the brightest stars and constellations.
More advanced sky charts are available on TheSkyLive for this object: 1) the Online Planetarium which is interactive and allows to select dates and additional objects to visualize; and 2) the Live Position and Data Tracker which provides the highest precision position data and features deep sky imagery from the Digitized Sky Survey.
High Precision Live Sky Chart
Asteroid 18 Melpomene Rise and Set Times
Today's Asteroid 18 Melpomene rise, transit and set times from Greenwich, United Kingdom [change]. All times are relative to the Europe/London timezone.
Asteroid 18 Melpomene Orbit Diagram
This 3d orbit diagram is a feature of our 3D Solar System Simulator and shows the orbit of Asteroid 18 Melpomene with respect of the Sun and the orbits of the major planets. The position of Asteroid 18 Melpomene 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!
View Asteroid 18 Melpomene in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Asteroid 18 Melpomene Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Asteroid 18 Melpomene computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Click on each row of the table to locate Asteroid 18 Melpomene in our Online Planetarium at the chosen date.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 Dec 03 | 15h 38m 08s | -11° 51’ 51” | 11.87 | Libra |
| 2018 Dec 04 | 15h 39m 48s | -11° 56’ 56” | 11.87 | Libra |
| 2018 Dec 05 | 15h 41m 29s | -12° 01’ 57” | 11.88 | Libra |
| 2018 Dec 06 | 15h 43m 09s | -12° 06’ 54” | 11.88 | Libra |
| 2018 Dec 07 | 15h 44m 49s | -12° 11’ 47” | 11.88 | Libra |
| 2018 Dec 08 | 15h 46m 30s | -12° 16’ 33” | 11.89 | Libra |
| 2018 Dec 09 | 15h 48m 11s | -12° 21’ 18” | 11.89 | Libra |
| 2018 Dec 10 | 15h 49m 51s | -12° 25’ 56” | 11.89 | Libra |
| 2018 Dec 11 | 15h 51m 32s | -12° 30’ 30” | 11.90 | Libra |
| 2018 Dec 12 | 15h 53m 12s | -12° 34’ 59” | 11.90 | Libra |
| 2018 Dec 13 | 15h 54m 53s | -12° 39’ 24” | 11.90 | Libra |
| 2018 Dec 14 | 15h 56m 35s | -12° 43’ 45” | 11.90 | Libra |
| 2018 Dec 15 | 15h 58m 15s | -12° 48’ 01” | 11.91 | Libra |
| 2018 Dec 16 | 15h 59m 57s | -12° 52’ 10” | 11.91 | Libra |
Distance of Asteroid 18 Melpomene from Earth
The following chart shows the distance of Asteroid 18 Melpomene from Earth as a function of time. Distance data is measured in Astronomical Units and sampled with a 2 days interval.
The reported distances might be inaccurate around the times of closest approach for objects passing extremely close to Earth. The value of the distance of 18 Melpomene is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Light Curve of Asteroid 18 Melpomene
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Asteroid 18 Melpomene, 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.
Asteroid 18 Melpomene Physical Data
The following shows the known values of the most important physical parameters of Asteroid 18 Melpomene. Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Physical Parameter | Value | Relative to Earth |
|---|---|---|
| Diameter | 140.57 km | 0.0110 |
| Sideral Rotation | 11.5700 hours | 0.4834 |
| Absolute Magnitude | 6.51 | |
| Geometric Albedo | 0.2225 | |
Asteroid 18 Melpomene Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Asteroid 18 Melpomene at epoch 26 April 2019 00:00 UTC (JD: 2458600.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.21767437 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 10.12873160° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 1.79673089 AU 268,787,117 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
2.79657613 AU 418,361,835 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
2.29665351 AU 343,574,476 km |
| Orbital period | period |
3.4800 years 1,271.2813 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2020-Mar-19 12:23:04 2,458,928.0160 JD |
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 227.95085219861° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 150.38385683288° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 267.25437949687° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.28317888°/day |
| Closest approach to Earth* | 2016-Oct-19 | |
| Distance of closest approach* | 0.82954014 AU 124,097,439 km |
|
* NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed for the time interval between 2013-Jan-01 and 2075-Dec-31, with a sampling interval of 1 day.