(68) Leto
ephemeris	date	magn	radius	delta	ra	dec	elong	phase
Today	12 Mar 2026	12.4	2.736 AU	2.861 AU	04h02m	+25°42'	72.7°	20.3°
Opposition	13 Feb 2027	11.5	3.232 AU	2.258 AU	10h06m	+23°36'	168.7°	3.4°

The interactive orbit chart above shows the body's path through the solar system and its position at the given date. Green and blue lines are shown perpendicular to the ecliptic plane: Green if the path is above the ecliptic plane, blue if it is below. (Left-click and drag to rotate the view; Right-click and drag to move the view; Use scroll wheel to zoom in our out.)

The orbital elements of Leto are:

            e (Eccentricity)                : 0.1843409
            a (Semimajor axis)              : 2.7827616
            i (Inclination)                 : 7.96052
            Ω (Longitude of ascending node) : 44.04867
            ω (Argument of perihelion)      : 304.89422
            M (Mean anomaly)                : 50.65927
            Epoch                           : 2025 Nov 21

            L (Longitude of perihelion)     : -10.79636
            B (Latitude of perihelion)      : -6.52239
            P (Orbital period in years)     : 4.64            
        

The light curve chart below shows the estimated development of the minor planet's magnitude.

The all-sky chart below shows the path of the minor planet over the same period as the light curve. The current position is marked yellow.

The following chart shows the path of the minor planet in the next few days. The field of view is optimized for (~10x50) binoculars and finderscopes.

Ephemerides:

Date       Time       RA (2000)    DEC (2000)    delta   radius  elong  phase   PA    magn
2026-03-12 00:00 UT   04 02 41.5   +25 42 58     2.861    2.736   72.7   20.3    77   12.4 
2026-03-12 04:28 UT   04 02 56.3   +25 43 38     2.864    2.736   72.6   20.3    77   12.4 
2026-03-13 00:00 UT   04 04 01.1   +25 46 31     2.876    2.738   72.0   20.2    77   12.4 
2026-03-14 00:00 UT   04 05 21.3   +25 50 03     2.891    2.740   71.3   20.1    77   12.4 
2026-03-15 00:00 UT   04 06 42.2   +25 53 34     2.905    2.742   70.7   20.0    77   12.4 
2026-03-16 00:00 UT   04 08 03.8   +25 57 05     2.920    2.743   70.0   19.9    77   12.4 
2026-03-17 00:00 UT   04 09 26.0   +26 00 35     2.934    2.745   69.3   19.8    77   12.4 
2026-03-18 00:00 UT   04 10 48.8   +26 04 04     2.949    2.747   68.6   19.7    78   12.4 
2026-03-19 00:00 UT   04 12 12.2   +26 07 32     2.963    2.749   68.0   19.6    78   12.4 
2026-03-20 00:00 UT   04 13 36.2   +26 10 58     2.978    2.751   67.3   19.5    78   12.5 
2026-03-21 00:00 UT   04 15 00.9   +26 14 24     2.992    2.753   66.6   19.4    78   12.5 
2026-03-22 00:00 UT   04 16 26.1   +26 17 49     3.007    2.755   65.9   19.3    78   12.5 
2026-03-23 00:00 UT   04 17 51.9   +26 21 12     3.021    2.757   65.3   19.2    78   12.5 
2026-03-24 00:00 UT   04 19 18.2   +26 24 33     3.035    2.759   64.6   19.1    78   12.5 
2026-03-25 00:00 UT   04 20 45.1   +26 27 54     3.049    2.761   64.0   18.9    78   12.5 
2026-03-26 00:00 UT   04 22 12.5   +26 31 12     3.063    2.763   63.3   18.8    78   12.5 
2026-03-27 00:00 UT   04 23 40.5   +26 34 29     3.077    2.765   62.7   18.7    78   12.5 
2026-03-28 00:00 UT   04 25 08.9   +26 37 45     3.091    2.766   62.0   18.6    78   12.5 
2026-03-29 00:00 UT   04 26 37.9   +26 40 59     3.105    2.768   61.4   18.4    78   12.5 
2026-03-30 00:00 UT   04 28 07.3   +26 44 10     3.118    2.770   60.7   18.3    78   12.5 
2026-03-31 00:00 UT   04 29 37.2   +26 47 20     3.132    2.772   60.1   18.2    78   12.5 
2026-04-01 00:00 UT   04 31 07.6   +26 50 28     3.146    2.774   59.4   18.1    78   12.5 
2026-04-02 00:00 UT   04 32 38.5   +26 53 34     3.159    2.776   58.8   17.9    78   12.5 
2026-04-03 00:00 UT   04 34 09.8   +26 56 38     3.173    2.778   58.1   17.8    79   12.6 
2026-04-04 00:00 UT   04 35 41.5   +26 59 39     3.186    2.780   57.5   17.7    79   12.6 
2026-04-05 00:00 UT   04 37 13.7   +27 02 39     3.199    2.782   56.9   17.5    79   12.6 
2026-04-06 00:00 UT   04 38 46.4   +27 05 36     3.212    2.784   56.2   17.4    79   12.6 

    Terminology:
            
    delta:  distance between minor planet and earth in AU
    radius: distance between minor planet and sun in AU
    magn:   magnitude (brightness) estimate    
    ra:     right ascension in hours (24h = 360deg)
    dec:    declination in degrees
    elong:  elongation in degrees (angle sun-earth-minor planet)    
    phase:  phase angle in degrees (angle sun-minor planet-earth)        
    AU:     Astronomical Unit (mean distance between earth and sun: 149597870.7 km
    

Orbital elements provided by the MPC (Minor Planet Center).
Calculations by a modified version of AAPlus, a C# implementation of the AA+ project by PJ Naughter from the algorithms presented in the book "Astronomical Algorithms" by Jean Meeus.
NGC2000 dso catalog and star labels from VizieR as provided by the Strasbourg astronomical Data Center.
Tycho2 catalog from the ESO archive.