76 Freia

Also known as (76) Freia, Freia

outer main-belt asteroid

Picture of the Day · NASA

Jupiter and Venus from Earth

2026-06-07

It was visible around the world. The sunset conjunction of Jupiter (left) and Venus (right) in 2012 was visible almost no matter where you lived on Earth. Anyone on our planet with a clear western horizon at sunset could see them. That year, a creative photographer traveled away from the town lights of Szubin, Poland to photograph a near closest approach of the two planets. The bright planets were then separated by only three degrees and his daughter struck a humorous pose. A faint red sunset still glowed in the background. Jupiter and Venus are together again this week after sunset, passing within a degree of each other about two days from today.

Key facts

Discovered by: Heinrich d'Arrest
Discovery date: 21 October 1862
Pronunciation: / ˈ f r eɪ . ə /
Named after: Freyja
Minor planet category: Outer main belt ( Cybele )
Adjectives: Freian

~2 min read

Article

76 Freia is a very large main-belt asteroid. It orbits in the outer part of the asteroid belt and is classified as a Cybele asteroid. Its composition is very primitive and it is extremely dark in color. Freia was discovered by the astronomer Heinrich d'Arrest on 21 October 1862, in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was his first and only asteroid discovery. It is named after the goddess Freyja in Norse mythology.

It is orbiting the Sun at a distance of 3.42 AU with a moderate eccentricity (ovalness) of 0.16 and an orbital period of 6.32 years. The orbital plane is inclined at an angle of 2.116° relative to the plane of the ecliptic. Based on infrared measurements, it has a diameter of 184 km. The asteroid has a Tholen spectral type of P.