Space Reference

Compiled data & simulations for 1,302,506 celestial objects

Welcome to SpaceReference.org. This site sets out to catalog and show off every known object in space. Asteroids and comets came first, and this open-source project keeps growing quickly.

SpaceDB compiles data from the NASA/JPL Small Body Database, the IAU Minor Planet Center, and the NASA/JPL Center for Near Earth Object Studies.

To build your own model of the solar system, try the full-screen interactive solar system view.

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Asteroids and Comets

Hundreds of thousands of celestial objects, sorted into the categories below for you to browse.

Mouseover objects in the lists below to highlight them in the orbit view. Click or tap to learn more about each object.

Largest

Among the biggest asteroids in the solar system, and the first ones we found.

Ceres
Dwarf Planet
Ceres takes 4.60 years to circle the sun and is roughly 939.400 km across, about the size of the U.S. state of Alaska.
Varuna
Dwarf Planet
Varuna takes 282.00 years to circle the sun and is roughly 900.000 km across, about the size of the U.S. state of Alaska.
Vesta
Dwarf Planet
Vesta takes 3.64 years to circle the sun and is roughly 525.400 km across, about the size of Great Britain.
Pallas
Dwarf Planet
Pallas takes 4.60 years to circle the sun and is roughly 513.000 km across, about the size of Great Britain.
Hygiea
Dwarf Planet
Hygiea takes 5.56 years to circle the sun and is roughly 407.120 km across, about the size of the U.S. state of Iowa.

Upcoming Approaches

These objects have upcoming fly-bys of Earth.

2021 TC1
Very Small Near-Earth Close Approach
2021 TC1 takes 1.01 years to circle the sun and is roughly 0.041 km across, about the size of a school bus or smaller. Next pass by Earth: Sept. 4, 2026.
2022 RK
Very Small Near-Earth Close Approach
2022 RK takes 0.80 years to circle the sun and is roughly 0.032 km across, about the size of a school bus or smaller. Next pass by Earth: Sept. 6, 2026.
246138 (2007 OG3)
Small Near-Earth Close Approach
2007 OG3 takes 3.18 years to circle the sun and is roughly 0.588 km across, about the size of the Golden Gate Bridge. Next pass by Earth: Sept. 6, 2026.
2008 GA4
Very Small Near-Earth Close Approach
2008 GA4 takes 2.35 years to circle the sun and is roughly 0.467 km across, about the size of the U.S. Capitol building. Next pass by Earth: Sept. 6, 2026.
186822 (2004 FE31)
Small Near-Earth Close Approach
2004 FE31 takes 1.97 years to circle the sun and is roughly 0.919 km across, about the size of the Golden Gate Bridge. Next pass by Earth: Sept. 6, 2026.

Potential Impactors

Objects that could one day hit Earth, ordered by how likely that is.

2010 RF12
Very Small Near-Earth Close Approach
2010 RF12 takes 1.09 years to circle the sun and is roughly 0.010 km across, about the size of a school bus or smaller. Chance of striking Earth in 2095: 10.240%.
2017 WT28
Very Small Near-Earth Close Approach
2017 WT28 takes 0.85 years to circle the sun and is roughly 0.012 km across, about the size of a school bus or smaller. Chance of striking Earth in 2104: 1.098%.
2020 CD3
Very Small Near-Earth Close Approach
2020 CD3 takes 1.04 years to circle the sun and is roughly 0.002 km across, about the size of a school bus or smaller. Chance of striking Earth in 2082: 0.851%.
2006 RH120
Very Small Near-Earth Close Approach
2006 RH120 takes 1.05 years to circle the sun and is roughly 0.006 km across, about the size of a school bus or smaller. Chance of striking Earth in 2044: 0.505%.
2006 JY26
Very Small Near-Earth Close Approach
2006 JY26 takes 1.02 years to circle the sun and is roughly 0.007 km across, about the size of a school bus or smaller. Chance of striking Earth in 2074: 0.484%.

Potential for Exploration

Reaching these objects takes relatively little fuel, so they are cheap targets for a spacecraft (ordered by delta-v).

2021 GM1
Very Small Near-Earth Close Approach
2021 GM1 takes 0.97 years to circle the sun and is roughly 0.004 km across, about the size of a school bus or smaller. Chance of striking Earth in 2122: 0.002%.
2023 FY3
Very Small Near-Earth Close Approach
2023 FY3 takes 1.11 years to circle the sun and is roughly 0.007 km across, about the size of a school bus or smaller. Chance of striking Earth in 2114: 0.000%.
2022 RD2
Very Small Near-Earth Close Approach
2022 RD2 takes 1.05 years to circle the sun and is roughly 0.009 km across, about the size of a school bus or smaller. Chance of striking Earth in 2087: 0.014%.
2022 OB5
Very Small Near-Earth
2022 OB5 takes 1.01 years to circle the sun and is roughly 0.008 km across, about the size of a school bus or smaller. Chance of striking Earth in 2109: 0.005%.
2000 SG344
Very Small Near-Earth Close Approach
2000 SG344 takes 0.97 years to circle the sun and is roughly 0.055 km across, about the size of a school bus or smaller. Chance of striking Earth in 2071: 0.104%.

In Honor Of...

These objects carry the names of notable people.

Einstein
Mid-Sized
Einstein takes 2.69 years to circle the sun and is roughly 3.975 km across, about the size of the island of Manhattan.
Hawking
Mid-Sized
Hawking takes 3.37 years to circle the sun and is roughly 2.013 km across, about the size of Mount Everest.
Sagan
Mid-Sized
Sagan takes 3.26 years to circle the sun and is roughly 6.559 km across, about the size of the San Francisco Bay.
Armstrong
Mid-Sized
Armstrong takes 3.31 years to circle the sun and is roughly 3.720 km across, about the size of the island of Manhattan.
Collins
Mid-Sized
Collins takes 3.81 years to circle the sun and is roughly 8.976 km across, about the size of the San Francisco Bay.

Object Classifications

The two labels you will see most often are "Near Earth Asteroid" (NEA) and "Potentially Hazardous Asteroid" (PHA). Neither name means the object poses any direct danger to Earth. Both are simply shorthand for where an orbit sits in relation to our own, and objects join or leave these lists as their orbits are measured more precisely. Learn more about various NEO groups here.

Categories

  • Asteroids with known shapes - these asteroids have been mapped by light curve inversion, radar, or flybys. Click through to see 3D models.

The categories below are orbital classifications as defined by NASA PDS: