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 local timezone Europe/London.
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 | MagnitudeMag | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 Apr 16 | 10.71 | 11h 53m 02s | +10° 09’ 24” | Virgo |
| 2018 Apr 17 | 10.73 | 11h 52m 23s | +10° 13’ 59” | Virgo |
| 2018 Apr 18 | 10.75 | 11h 51m 47s | +10° 18’ 23” | Leo |
| 2018 Apr 19 | 10.77 | 11h 51m 11s | +10° 22’ 32” | Leo |
| 2018 Apr 20 | 10.79 | 11h 50m 36s | +10° 26’ 30” | Leo |
| 2018 Apr 21 | 10.81 | 11h 50m 03s | +10° 30’ 14” | Leo |
| 2018 Apr 22 | 10.83 | 11h 49m 32s | +10° 33’ 46” | Leo |
| 2018 Apr 23 | 10.85 | 11h 49m 00s | +10° 37’ 04” | Leo |
| 2018 Apr 24 | 10.87 | 11h 48m 32s | +10° 40’ 09” | Leo |
| 2018 Apr 25 | 10.89 | 11h 48m 03s | +10° 43’ 04” | Leo |
| 2018 Apr 26 | 10.91 | 11h 47m 38s | +10° 45’ 43” | Leo |
| 2018 Apr 27 | 10.93 | 11h 47m 12s | +10° 48’ 12” | Leo |
| 2018 Apr 28 | 10.95 | 11h 46m 49s | +10° 50’ 27” | Leo |
| 2018 Apr 29 | 10.97 | 11h 46m 26s | +10° 52’ 32” | Leo |
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 22 March 2018 00:00 UTC (JD: 2458200.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.21861916 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 10.13234975° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 1.79360430 AU 268,319,384 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
2.79725388 AU 418,463,224 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
2.29542909 AU 343,391,304 km |
| Orbital period | period |
3.4800 years 1,270.2648 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2016-Sep-25 11:22:37 2,457,656.9740 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | 2020-Mar-18 17:43 2,458,927.2388 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 227.8395335629° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 150.46471924802° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 154.0382383112° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.28340549°/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.