(17656) Hayabusa Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 6 November 1996 by N. Sato at Chichibu.
The minor-planet explorer, Hayabusa (MUSES-C) was developed by JAXA/ISAS and launched in 2003. It traveled to (25143) Itokawa to capture samples of surface material. After overcoming many critical difficulties, Hayabusa finally returned to the earth in 2010, with fragments of surface material.Naming citation (20111210/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Hayabusa is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Hayabusa is 2.98 au from the Sun and 3.89 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 17656 |
| Provisional designation | 1996 VL4 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Rotation period | 6.12 hours |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 14.72 |
| Orbital period | 4.70 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.81 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.59 – 3.02 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.0768 |
| Inclination | 3.47° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.58 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also discovered on 6 November 1996
- (7616) Sadako
- (8574) Makotoirie
- (9099) Kenjitanabe
- (10880) Kaguya
- (17657) Himawari
- (18520) Wolfratshausen
- (18524) Tagatoshihiro
- (19313) Shibatakazunari
- (22454) Rosalylopes
- (27917) Edoardo
- (27918) Azusagawa