Asteroid 4 Vesta
Asteroid 4 Vesta is in the constellation of
Virgo,
at a distance of
Finder Charts
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High precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Asteroid 4 Vesta is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.
Also check out Where is Asteroid 4 Vesta?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Asteroid 4 Vesta in the sky and additional links to sky charts.
Celestial Coordinates
Apparent
J2000
Additional Information
Rise and Set Times
Today's rise, transit and set times of Asteroid 4 Vesta from Greenwich, UK (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):
- 4 Vesta is below the horizon from Greenwich, UK.
- Given its current magnitude, 4 Vesta is barely visible to naked eye under a clear and dark sky, easily visible with the help of a small binocular.
- 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.
Distance from Earth
The distance of Asteroid 4 Vesta from Earth is currently
The following chart shows the distance of Asteroid 4 Vesta 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.
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 4 Vesta from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.
Closest Approach
Between 1 January 1600 and 30 December 2499, the closest approach of Asteroid 4 Vesta to Earth happens on Thu Jun 23 2439 at a distance of 1.131542 Astronomical Units, or 169,276,274 kilometers:
NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.
Light Curve
The following chart is the predicted light curve (visual magnitude as a function of time) of Asteroid 4 Vesta, 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.
Orbital Elements
The following table lists the orbital elements of Asteroid 4 Vesta at epoch 24 February 2023 00:00 UTC (JD: 2460000.5). Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Element | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Orbit eccentricity | e | 0.08875750 |
| Orbit inclination | i | 7.13925798° |
| Perihelion distance | q | 2.15330084 AU 322,129,221 km |
| Aphelion distance | Q |
2.57277559 AU 384,881,751 km |
| Semi-major axis | a |
2.36303821 AU 353,505,486 km |
| Orbital period | period |
3.6326 years 1,326.7972 days |
| Date of perihelion transit | Tp | 2021-Dec-27 16:07:29 2,459,576.1719 JD |
| Next perihelion transit | 2025-Aug-15 11:15 2,460,902.9691 JD |
|
| Argument of perihelion | peri | 151.59916398802° |
| Longitude of the ascending node | node | 103.75730014935° |
| Mean anomaly | M | 115.13298959749° |
| Mean motion | n | 0.27133009°/day |
View Asteroid 4 Vesta in the 3D Solar System Simulator
Physical Data
The following shows the known values of the most important physical parameters of Asteroid 4 Vesta. Source: JPL Small-Body Database
| Physical Parameter | Value | Relative to Earth |
|---|---|---|
| Diameter | 530 km | 0.0416 |
| Sideral Rotation | 5.3420 hours | 0.2232 |
| Absolute Magnitude | 3.2 | |
| Geometric Albedo | 0.4228 |
15 Days Ephemeris
The following table lists the ephemerides of Asteroid 4 Vesta computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Apparent celestial coordinates are provided.
| Date | Right AscensionR.A. | DeclinationDec. | MagnitudeMag | Constellation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 May 15 | 14h 40m 47s | -03° 58’ 50” | 5.75 | Virgo |
| 2025 May 16 | 14h 39m 53s | -03° 58’ 26” | 5.77 | Virgo |
| 2025 May 17 | 14h 39m 00s | -03° 58’ 15” | 5.79 | Virgo |
| 2025 May 18 | 14h 38m 08s | -03° 58’ 15” | 5.81 | Virgo |
| 2025 May 19 | 14h 37m 16s | -03° 58’ 27” | 5.83 | Virgo |
| 2025 May 20 | 14h 36m 26s | -03° 58’ 51” | 5.85 | Virgo |
| 2025 May 21 | 14h 35m 37s | -03° 59’ 27” | 5.87 | Virgo |
| 2025 May 22 | 14h 34m 50s | -04° 00’ 15” | 5.89 | Virgo |
| 2025 May 23 | 14h 34m 03s | -04° 01’ 15” | 5.91 | Virgo |
| 2025 May 24 | 14h 33m 18s | -04° 02’ 27” | 5.93 | Virgo |
| 2025 May 25 | 14h 32m 34s | -04° 03’ 51” | 5.95 | Virgo |
| 2025 May 26 | 14h 31m 51s | -04° 05’ 28” | 5.97 | Virgo |
| 2025 May 27 | 14h 31m 10s | -04° 07’ 16” | 5.99 | Virgo |
| 2025 May 28 | 14h 30m 31s | -04° 09’ 17” | 6.01 | Virgo |
Additional Resources on TheSkyLive
- Asteroid 4 Vesta: Complete reference information on TheSkyLive.com.
- Where is Asteroid 4 Vesta?: Key information on locating Asteroid 4 Vesta in the sky.
- Distance from Earth: Find out how far Asteroid 4 Vesta is from Earth right now.
- How Bright is Asteroid 4 Vesta?: Current visual brightness (magnitude) and apparent size.
- Rise and Set Times: Asteroid 4 Vesta's rise and set times from your location.
- Interactive Sky Map: planetarium-style interactive visualization of Asteroid 4 Vesta's position in the sky.
- Live Position Tracker: high precision position tracker with deep space imagery.
- Ephemeris: 15 days Asteroid 4 Vesta's computed ephemeris.
- Orbital elements: information about Asteroid 4 Vesta orbital parameters.
- Orbit Visualization. 3d interactive visualization showing the orbit of Asteroid 4 Vesta with respect to the major Solar System objects.
- Physical Data. Detailed information about physical properties of Asteroid 4 Vesta, such as mass and geometric properties.