Q158350

Also known as (967) Helionape, Helionape

main-belt asteroid belonging to the Flora family

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: W. Baade
Discovery site: Bergedorf
Discovery date: 9 November 1921
Pronunciation: / h iː l i ˈ ɒ n ə p iː /
Alternative designations: 1921 KV; A922 AB
Observation arc: 91.53 yr (33433 days)

~1 min read

Article

967 Helionape is an asteroid belonging to the Flora family of Main Belt asteroids. It was discovered by German astronomer Walter Baade at Hamburg Observatory on November 9, 1921, and was named after the Austrian theatrical actor Adolf von Sonnenthal. This object is orbiting the Sun at a distance of 2.23 AU with a period of 3.32 years and an eccentricity of 0.168. The orbital plane is inclined at an angle of 5.4° to the ecliptic.

Its diameter is about 12 km and it has an albedo of 0.178. Photometric observations in 2007 generated a light curve showing a rotation period of 3.234±0.002 h. The brightness amplitude during the measured period was 0.058±0.005 magnitude.