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public  Greenwich, UK Greenwich, UK  ⓘ
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Sunrise: 7:12 
Transit: 12:14 
Sunset: 17:16
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Dwarf Planets and Asteroids » 

Asteroid 4 Vesta

Above the horizon.  Rise: 23:49 | Tran: 5:12 | Set: 10:32
Alt: 8.03°   Az: 246.89°   Direction: West-South-West

4 Vesta is a large asteroid located in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. It was discovered on March 29, 1807 by German astronomer Heinrich Wilhelm Olbers and is one of the largest asteroids in the solar system, with a diameter of approximately 525 kilometers. Vesta has a relatively bright surface and is thought to be one of the few remaining protoplanets from the early solar system that has not undergone significant alteration since its formation. It has a differentiated interior, with a rocky crust, a mantle, and a metallic core. Vesta has a rotation period of about 5.34 hours and an orbital period of 3.63 Earth years. It has been observed by ground-based telescopes, as well as by the Dawn spacecraft, which orbited the asteroid from 2011 to 2012. The observations have revealed insights into its geology, composition, and history, including evidence of volcanic activity, impact craters, and a unique set of surface features known as "Vestoids", which are fragments believed to have been ejected from Vesta's surface by impacts.

Asteroid 4 Vesta is in the constellation of Libra, at a distance of 267,193,916.0 kilometers from Earth. The current Right Ascension is 14h 58m 20s and the Declination is -07° 37’ 48” (apparent coordinates). The magnitude of Asteroid 4 Vesta is 7.16 (data provided by JPL Horizons).

Finder Charts

Map showing Asteroid 4 Vesta in Libra on February, 16 2025. Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View interactive star map
Sky map showing Asteroid 4 Vesta in Libra on February, 16 2025. Field of view: 15x9 degrees. View in interactive sky chart

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.

4 Vesta
RA: 14h 56m 59s
Dec: -07° 31’ 48”
Deep sky finder chart for Asteroid 4 Vesta. Field of view: 60x40 arcmins. View in deep sky object tracker

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

14h 58m 20s
-07° 37’ 48”
04h 27m 03s
19h 25m 23s

J2000

14h 56m 59s
-07° 31’ 48”

Additional Information

Libra
7.16

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):

Azimuth: 97.6°
Max altitude: 30.9°
Azimuth: 262.4°
  • 4 Vesta is above the horizon from Greenwich, UK.
  • Right now it is placed in the West-South-West direction at an altitude of 8.03° above the horizon.
  • Given its current magnitude, 4 Vesta is 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 267,193,916.0 kilometers, equivalent to 1.7860810100 Astronomical Units. Light takes 14m 51.263s to travel from Asteroid 4 Vesta and arrive to us.

267,193,916.0
1.7860810100
14m 51.263s

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.

Chart of the distance of Asteroid 4 Vesta 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 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:

Thu Jun 23 2439
169,276,274
1.131542

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.

Chart of the magnitude of Asteroid 4 Vesta as a function of time

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

Orbit Visualization

Orbit Diagram of Asteroid 4 Vesta
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 Feb 09 14h 50m 48s -07° 28’ 55” 7.29 Libra
2025 Feb 10 14h 51m 53s -07° 30’ 32” 7.28 Libra
2025 Feb 11 14h 52m 56s -07° 32’ 00” 7.26 Libra
2025 Feb 12 14h 53m 59s -07° 33’ 22” 7.24 Libra
2025 Feb 13 14h 55m 00s -07° 34’ 35” 7.23 Libra
2025 Feb 14 14h 56m 00s -07° 35’ 41” 7.21 Libra
2025 Feb 15 14h 56m 59s -07° 36’ 39” 7.19 Libra
2025 Feb 16 14h 57m 57s -07° 37’ 30” 7.17 Libra
2025 Feb 17 14h 58m 54s -07° 38’ 12” 7.15 Libra
2025 Feb 18 14h 59m 49s -07° 38’ 48” 7.14 Libra
2025 Feb 19 15h 00m 43s -07° 39’ 16” 7.12 Libra
2025 Feb 20 15h 01m 36s -07° 39’ 35” 7.10 Libra
2025 Feb 21 15h 02m 27s -07° 39’ 48” 7.08 Libra
2025 Feb 22 15h 03m 17s -07° 39’ 53” 7.06 Libra

Additional Resources