Asteroids & Minor Planets

Explore by theme

• All Minor Planets

  Every asteroid, dwarf planet, and minor body modelled in the encyclopedia.

  38 bodies
• Largest Asteroids

  The most massive minor planets, led by the dwarf planet Ceres and the giant main-belt asteroids Vesta and Pallas.

  20 bodies
• Near-Earth Objects

  Asteroids whose orbits bring them close to Earth — the Apollo, Aten, Amor, and Atira classes.

  11 bodies
• Potentially Hazardous Asteroids

  Near-Earth asteroids large enough and close enough to warrant tracking, under the objective PHA criterion — a monitoring category, not a prediction of impact.

  5 bodies
• Main-Belt Asteroids

  Bodies of the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.

  16 bodies
• Dwarf Planets

  The minor-planet dwarf planets — Ceres in the asteroid belt, and Pluto, Haumea, Makemake, and Eris beyond Neptune.

  2 bodies
• Trojan Asteroids

  Minor planets sharing a giant planet's orbit at its Lagrange points, chiefly the Jupiter Trojans.

  2 bodies
• Centaurs

  Icy bodies orbiting among the giant planets, transitional between the Kuiper Belt and the comets.

  1 bodies
• Trans-Neptunian Objects

  Icy minor planets beyond Neptune — Kuiper Belt, scattered-disc, and detached objects.

  4 bodies
• Kuiper Belt Objects

  Bodies of the broad icy ring beyond Neptune's orbit.

  3 bodies
• Metallic Asteroids

  Metal-rich (M-type) asteroids, such as the mission target 16 Psyche.

  2 bodies
• Carbonaceous Asteroids

  Dark, primitive, carbon-rich (C-type and related) asteroids — the most common kind.

  12 bodies
• Silicaceous Asteroids

  Stony (S-type) asteroids, common in the inner main belt and among near-Earth objects.

  10 bodies
• Binary Asteroids

  Asteroids with a single moon, such as Didymos and its moonlet Dimorphos.

  3 bodies
• Triple Systems

  Asteroids with two moons — led by 87 Sylvia, the first triple asteroid system found.

  1 bodies
• Most-Explored Asteroids

  Minor planets that have been visited by a spacecraft.

  10 bodies
• Sample-Return Targets

  Asteroids from which spacecraft have returned samples to Earth — Itokawa, Ryugu, and Bennu.

  3 bodies
• Mission Targets

  Minor planets that have been, or are being, visited by a mission.

  12 bodies
• Historic Discoveries

  The minor planets found in the nineteenth century, from Ceres (1801) onward.

  18 bodies
• Resource & Mining Interest

  Real bodies frequently discussed as candidates for future resource use — metal-rich or volatile-rich, and relatively accessible. Inclusion is not a claim that mining is planned or feasible.

  4 bodies

Dynamical populations

• Main Asteroid Belt
  ≈ 2.1–3.3 AU
• Mars-Crossing Asteroids
• Hungaria Group
  ≈ 1.8–2.0 AU
• Hilda Group
  ≈ 3.7–4.2 AU
• Centaurs
  between Jupiter and Neptune
• Kuiper Belt
  ≈ 30–50 AU
• Scattered Disc
  beyond ≈ 30 AU
• Detached Objects
• Apollo asteroids
  Near-Earth class
• Aten asteroids
  Near-Earth class
• Amor asteroids
  Near-Earth class
• Atira asteroids
  Near-Earth class
• Jupiter Trojans
  Trojan population
• Greek Camp (L4)
  Trojan population
• Trojan Camp (L5)
  Trojan population
• Neptune Trojans
  Trojan population

Orbital resonances

The mean-motion resonances that sculpt the minor-planet populations.

• 3:2 resonance with Jupiter
  Ratio 3:2
• 1:1 resonance with Jupiter
  Ratio 1:1
• 2:3 resonance with Neptune
  Ratio 2:3
• 1:1 resonance with Neptune
  Ratio 1:1

Asteroid families

• Eos family
  K-type
• Eunomia family
  S-type
• Flora family
  S-type
• Hygiea family
  C-type
• Koronis family
  S-type
• Themis family
  C-type
• Vesta family (Vestoids)
  V-type

Impact events

• Chicxulub impact
  ≈ 66 million years ago
• Tunguska event
  30 June 1908
• Chelyabinsk meteor
  15 February 2013