MPCClass

class astroquery.mpc.MPCClass[source]

Bases: BaseQuery

Attributes Summary

MPCOBS_URL

MPC_PASSWORD

MPC_URL

MPC_USERNAME

MPES_URL

OBSERVATORY_CODES_URL

TIMEOUT

Methods Summary

get_ephemeris(*args, **kwargs)

Queries the service and returns a table object.

get_ephemeris_async(target[, location, ...])

Object ephemerides from the Minor Planet Ephemeris Service.

get_mpc_object_endpoint(target_type)

get_observations(*args, **kwargs)

Queries the service and returns a table object.

get_observations_async(targetid[, id_type, ...])

Obtain all reported observations for an asteroid or a comet from the Minor Planet Center observations database.

get_observatory_codes(*args, **kwargs)

Queries the service and returns a table object.

get_observatory_codes_async([...])

Table of observatory codes from the IAU Minor Planet Center.

get_observatory_location(code[, cache])

IAU observatory location.

query_object(*args, **kwargs)

Queries the service and returns a table object.

query_object_async(target_type[, ...])

Query around a specific object within a given mission catalog.

query_objects(*args, **kwargs)

Queries the service and returns a table object.

query_objects_async(target_type[, ...])

Query around a specific object within a given mission catalog

Attributes Documentation

MPCOBS_URL = 'http://minorplanetcenter.net/search_db'
MPC_PASSWORD = 'mpc!!ws'
MPC_URL = 'https://minorplanetcenter.net/web_service'
MPC_USERNAME = 'mpc_ws'
MPES_URL = 'https://cgi.minorplanetcenter.net/cgi-bin/mpeph2.cgi'
OBSERVATORY_CODES_URL = 'https://minorplanetcenter.net/iau/lists/ObsCodes.html'
TIMEOUT = 60

Methods Documentation

get_ephemeris(*args, **kwargs)

Queries the service and returns a table object.

Object ephemerides from the Minor Planet Ephemeris Service.

Parameters:
targetstr

Designation of the object of interest. See Notes for acceptable formats.

locationstr, array-like, or EarthLocation, optional

Observer’s location as an IAU observatory code, a 3-element array of Earth longitude, latitude, altitude, or a EarthLocation. Longitude and latitude should be anything that initializes an Angle object, and altitude should initialize an Quantity object (with units of length). If None, then the geocenter (code 500) is used.

startstr or Time, optional

First epoch of the ephemeris as a string (UT), or astropy Time. Strings are parsed by Time. If None, then today is used. Valid dates span the time period 1900 Jan 1 - 2099 Dec 31 [MPES].

stepstr or Quantity, optional

The ephemeris step size or interval in units of days, hours, minutes, or seconds. Strings are parsed by Quantity. All inputs are rounded to the nearest integer. Default is 1 day.

numberint, optional

The number of ephemeris dates to compute. Must be ≤1441. If None, the value depends on the units of step: 21 for days, 49 for hours, 121 for minutes, or 301 for seconds.

ut_offsetint, optional

Number of hours to offset from 0 UT for daily ephemerides.

eph_typestr, optional

Specify the type of ephemeris:

equatorial: RA and Dec (default)
heliocentric: heliocentric position and velocity vectors
geocentric: geocentric position vector
ra_formatdict, optional

Format the RA column with to_string using these keyword arguments, e.g., {'sep': ':', 'unit': 'hourangle', 'precision': 1}.

dec_formatdict, optional

Format the Dec column with to_string using these keyword arguments, e.g., {'sep': ':', 'precision': 0}.

proper_motionstr, optional

total: total motion and direction (default) coordinate: separate RA and Dec coordinate motion sky: separate RA and Dec sky motion (i.e., includes a cos(Dec) term).

proper_motion_unitstring or Unit, optional

Convert proper motion to this unit. Must be an angular rate. Default is ‘arcsec/h’.

suppress_daytimebool, optional

Suppress output when the Sun is above the local horizon. (default False)

suppress_setbool, optional

Suppress output when the object is below the local horizon. (default False)

perturbedbool, optional

Generate perturbed ephemerides for unperturbed orbits (default True).

unc_linksbool, optional

Return columns with uncertainty map and offset links, if available.

get_query_payloadbool, optional

Return the HTTP request parameters as a dictionary (default: False).

get_raw_responsebool, optional

Return raw data without parsing into a table (default: False).

cachebool, optional

Cache results or use cached results (default: False).

Returns:
tableA Table object.

Notes

See the MPES user’s guide [MPES] for details on options and implementation.

MPES allows azimuths to be measured eastwards from the north meridian, or westwards from the south meridian. However, the AltAz coordinate frame assumes eastwards of north. To remain consistent with Astropy, eastwards of north is used.

Acceptable target names [MPES] are listed in the tables below.

Attention

Asteroid designations in the text version of the documentation may be prefixed with a backslash, which should be ignored. This is to force correct rendering of the designation in the rendered versions of the documentation (e.g., HTML).

Target

Description

(3202)

Numbered minor planet (3202)

14829

Numbered minor planet (14829)

1997 XF11

Unnumbered minor planet 1997 XF11

1P

Comet 1P/Halley

C/2003 A2

Comet C/2003 A2 (Gleason)

P/2003 CP7

Comet P/2003 CP7 (LINEAR-NEAT)

For comets, P/ and C/ are interchangable. The designation may also be in a packed format:

Target

Description

00233

Numbered minor planet (233)

K03A07A

Unnumbered minor planet 2003 AA7

PK03C07P

Comet P/2003 CP7 (LINEAR-NEAT)

0039P

Comet 39P/Oterma

You may also search by name:

Target

Description

Encke

(9134) Encke

Africa

(1193) Africa

Africano

(6391) Africano

P/Encke

2P/Encke

C/Encke

2P/Encke

C/Gleason

C/2003 A2 (Gleason)

If a comet name is not unique, the first match will be returned.

References

[MPES] (1,2,3)

Williams, G. The Minor Planet Ephemeris Service. https://minorplanetcenter.net/iau/info/MPES.pdf (retrieved 2018 June 19).

Examples

>>> from astroquery.mpc import MPC
>>> tab = astroquery.mpc.MPC.get_ephemeris('(24)', location=568,
...            start='2003-02-26', step='100d', number=3)  
>>> print(tab)  
get_ephemeris_async(target, location='500', start=None, step='1d', number=None, ut_offset=0, eph_type='equatorial', ra_format=None, dec_format=None, proper_motion='total', proper_motion_unit='arcsec/h', suppress_daytime=False, suppress_set=False, perturbed=True, unc_links=False, get_query_payload=False, get_raw_response=False, cache=False)[source]

Object ephemerides from the Minor Planet Ephemeris Service.

Parameters:
targetstr

Designation of the object of interest. See Notes for acceptable formats.

locationstr, array-like, or EarthLocation, optional

Observer’s location as an IAU observatory code, a 3-element array of Earth longitude, latitude, altitude, or a EarthLocation. Longitude and latitude should be anything that initializes an Angle object, and altitude should initialize an Quantity object (with units of length). If None, then the geocenter (code 500) is used.

startstr or Time, optional

First epoch of the ephemeris as a string (UT), or astropy Time. Strings are parsed by Time. If None, then today is used. Valid dates span the time period 1900 Jan 1 - 2099 Dec 31 [MPES].

stepstr or Quantity, optional

The ephemeris step size or interval in units of days, hours, minutes, or seconds. Strings are parsed by Quantity. All inputs are rounded to the nearest integer. Default is 1 day.

numberint, optional

The number of ephemeris dates to compute. Must be ≤1441. If None, the value depends on the units of step: 21 for days, 49 for hours, 121 for minutes, or 301 for seconds.

ut_offsetint, optional

Number of hours to offset from 0 UT for daily ephemerides.

eph_typestr, optional

Specify the type of ephemeris:

equatorial: RA and Dec (default)
heliocentric: heliocentric position and velocity vectors
geocentric: geocentric position vector
ra_formatdict, optional

Format the RA column with to_string using these keyword arguments, e.g., {'sep': ':', 'unit': 'hourangle', 'precision': 1}.

dec_formatdict, optional

Format the Dec column with to_string using these keyword arguments, e.g., {'sep': ':', 'precision': 0}.

proper_motionstr, optional

total: total motion and direction (default) coordinate: separate RA and Dec coordinate motion sky: separate RA and Dec sky motion (i.e., includes a cos(Dec) term).

proper_motion_unitstring or Unit, optional

Convert proper motion to this unit. Must be an angular rate. Default is ‘arcsec/h’.

suppress_daytimebool, optional

Suppress output when the Sun is above the local horizon. (default False)

suppress_setbool, optional

Suppress output when the object is below the local horizon. (default False)

perturbedbool, optional

Generate perturbed ephemerides for unperturbed orbits (default True).

unc_linksbool, optional

Return columns with uncertainty map and offset links, if available.

get_query_payloadbool, optional

Return the HTTP request parameters as a dictionary (default: False).

get_raw_responsebool, optional

Return raw data without parsing into a table (default: False).

cachebool, optional

Cache results or use cached results (default: False).

Returns:
responserequests.Response

The HTTP response returned from the service.

Notes

See the MPES user’s guide [MPES] for details on options and implementation.

MPES allows azimuths to be measured eastwards from the north meridian, or westwards from the south meridian. However, the AltAz coordinate frame assumes eastwards of north. To remain consistent with Astropy, eastwards of north is used.

Acceptable target names [MPES] are listed in the tables below.

Attention

Asteroid designations in the text version of the documentation may be prefixed with a backslash, which should be ignored. This is to force correct rendering of the designation in the rendered versions of the documentation (e.g., HTML).

Target

Description

(3202)

Numbered minor planet (3202)

14829

Numbered minor planet (14829)

1997 XF11

Unnumbered minor planet 1997 XF11

1P

Comet 1P/Halley

C/2003 A2

Comet C/2003 A2 (Gleason)

P/2003 CP7

Comet P/2003 CP7 (LINEAR-NEAT)

For comets, P/ and C/ are interchangable. The designation may also be in a packed format:

Target

Description

00233

Numbered minor planet (233)

K03A07A

Unnumbered minor planet 2003 AA7

PK03C07P

Comet P/2003 CP7 (LINEAR-NEAT)

0039P

Comet 39P/Oterma

You may also search by name:

Target

Description

Encke

(9134) Encke

Africa

(1193) Africa

Africano

(6391) Africano

P/Encke

2P/Encke

C/Encke

2P/Encke

C/Gleason

C/2003 A2 (Gleason)

If a comet name is not unique, the first match will be returned.

References

[MPES] (1,2,3)

Williams, G. The Minor Planet Ephemeris Service. https://minorplanetcenter.net/iau/info/MPES.pdf (retrieved 2018 June 19).

Examples

>>> from astroquery.mpc import MPC
>>> tab = astroquery.mpc.MPC.get_ephemeris('(24)', location=568,
...            start='2003-02-26', step='100d', number=3)  
>>> print(tab)  
get_mpc_object_endpoint(target_type)[source]
get_observations(*args, **kwargs)

Queries the service and returns a table object.

Obtain all reported observations for an asteroid or a comet from the Minor Planet Center observations database.

Parameters:
targetidint or str

Official target number or designation. If a number is provided (either as int or str), the input is interpreted as an asteroid number; asteroid designations are interpreted as such (note that a whitespace between the year and the remainder of the designation is required and no packed designations are allowed). To query a periodic comet number, you have to append 'P', e.g., '234P'. To query any comet designation, the designation has to start with a letter describing the comet type and a slash, e.g., 'C/2018 E1'. Comet or asteroid names, Palomar-Leiden Survey designations, and individual comet fragments cannot be queried.

id_typestr, optional

Manual override for identifier type. If None, the identifier type is derived by parsing targetid; if this automated classification fails, it can be set manually using this parameter. Possible values are 'asteroid number', 'asteroid designation', 'comet number', and 'comet designation'. Default: None

get_mpcformatbool, optional

If True, this method will return an QTable with only a single column holding the original MPC 80-column observation format. Default: False

get_raw_responsebool, optional

If True, this method will return the raw output from the MPC servers (json). Default: False

get_query_payloadbool, optional

Return the HTTP request parameters as a dictionary (default: False).

cachebool, optional

If True, queries will be cached. Default: True

Returns:
tableA Table object.
Raises:
RuntimeError

If query did not return any data.

ValueError

If target name could not be parsed properly and target type could not be identified.

Notes

The following quantities are included in the output table

Column Name

Definition

number

official IAU target number (int)

desig

provisional target designation (str)

discovery (*)

target discovery flag (str)

comettype (*)

orbital type of comet (str)

note1 (#)

Note1 (str)

note2 (#)

Note2 (str)

epoch

epoch of observation (Julian Date, float)

RA

RA reported (J2000, deg, float)

DEC

declination reported (J2000, deg, float)

mag

reported magnitude (mag, float)

band (*)

photometric band for mag (str)

phottype (*)

comet photometry type (nuclear/total, str)

observatory

IAU observatory code (str)

(*): Column names are optional and depend on whether an asteroid or a comet has been queried.

(#): Parameters Note1 and Note2 are defined here.

Examples

>>> from astroquery.mpc import MPC
>>> MPC.get_observations(12893)  
<QTable masked=True length=1401>
number   desig   discovery note1 ...   mag   band observatory
                                 ...   mag
int64     str9      str1    str1 ... float64 str1     str3
------ --------- --------- ----- ... ------- ---- -----------
 12893 1998 QS55        --    -- ...     0.0   --         413
 12893 1998 QS55        --    -- ...     0.0   --         413
 12893 1998 QS55         *     4 ...     0.0   --         809
 12893 1998 QS55        --     4 ...     0.0   --         809
 12893 1998 QS55        --     4 ...     0.0   --         809
 12893 1998 QS55        --     4 ...    18.4   --         809
   ...       ...       ...   ... ...     ...  ...         ...
 12893 1998 QS55        --    -- ...   18.63    c         T05
 12893 1998 QS55        --    -- ...   18.55    c         T05
 12893 1998 QS55        --    -- ...    18.3    r         I41
 12893 1998 QS55        --    -- ...    18.3    r         I41
 12893 1998 QS55        --    -- ...    18.2    r         I41
 12893 1998 QS55        --    -- ...    18.3    r         I41
get_observations_async(targetid, id_type=None, comettype=None, get_mpcformat=False, get_raw_response=False, get_query_payload=False, cache=True)[source]

Obtain all reported observations for an asteroid or a comet from the Minor Planet Center observations database.

Parameters:
targetidint or str

Official target number or designation. If a number is provided (either as int or str), the input is interpreted as an asteroid number; asteroid designations are interpreted as such (note that a whitespace between the year and the remainder of the designation is required and no packed designations are allowed). To query a periodic comet number, you have to append 'P', e.g., '234P'. To query any comet designation, the designation has to start with a letter describing the comet type and a slash, e.g., 'C/2018 E1'. Comet or asteroid names, Palomar-Leiden Survey designations, and individual comet fragments cannot be queried.

id_typestr, optional

Manual override for identifier type. If None, the identifier type is derived by parsing targetid; if this automated classification fails, it can be set manually using this parameter. Possible values are 'asteroid number', 'asteroid designation', 'comet number', and 'comet designation'. Default: None

get_mpcformatbool, optional

If True, this method will return an QTable with only a single column holding the original MPC 80-column observation format. Default: False

get_raw_responsebool, optional

If True, this method will return the raw output from the MPC servers (json). Default: False

get_query_payloadbool, optional

Return the HTTP request parameters as a dictionary (default: False).

cachebool, optional

If True, queries will be cached. Default: True

Raises:
RuntimeError

If query did not return any data.

ValueError

If target name could not be parsed properly and target type could not be identified.

Notes

The following quantities are included in the output table

Column Name

Definition

number

official IAU target number (int)

desig

provisional target designation (str)

discovery (*)

target discovery flag (str)

comettype (*)

orbital type of comet (str)

note1 (#)

Note1 (str)

note2 (#)

Note2 (str)

epoch

epoch of observation (Julian Date, float)

RA

RA reported (J2000, deg, float)

DEC

declination reported (J2000, deg, float)

mag

reported magnitude (mag, float)

band (*)

photometric band for mag (str)

phottype (*)

comet photometry type (nuclear/total, str)

observatory

IAU observatory code (str)

(*): Column names are optional and depend on whether an asteroid or a comet has been queried.

(#): Parameters Note1 and Note2 are defined here.

Examples

>>> from astroquery.mpc import MPC
>>> MPC.get_observations(12893)  
<QTable masked=True length=1401>
number   desig   discovery note1 ...   mag   band observatory
                                 ...   mag
int64     str9      str1    str1 ... float64 str1     str3
------ --------- --------- ----- ... ------- ---- -----------
 12893 1998 QS55        --    -- ...     0.0   --         413
 12893 1998 QS55        --    -- ...     0.0   --         413
 12893 1998 QS55         *     4 ...     0.0   --         809
 12893 1998 QS55        --     4 ...     0.0   --         809
 12893 1998 QS55        --     4 ...     0.0   --         809
 12893 1998 QS55        --     4 ...    18.4   --         809
   ...       ...       ...   ... ...     ...  ...         ...
 12893 1998 QS55        --    -- ...   18.63    c         T05
 12893 1998 QS55        --    -- ...   18.55    c         T05
 12893 1998 QS55        --    -- ...    18.3    r         I41
 12893 1998 QS55        --    -- ...    18.3    r         I41
 12893 1998 QS55        --    -- ...    18.2    r         I41
 12893 1998 QS55        --    -- ...    18.3    r         I41
get_observatory_codes(*args, **kwargs)

Queries the service and returns a table object.

Table of observatory codes from the IAU Minor Planet Center.

Parameters:
get_raw_responsebool, optional

Return raw data without parsing into a table (default: False).

cachebool, optional

Cache results or use cached results (default: True).

Returns:
tableA Table object.

References

Examples

>>> from astroquery.mpc import MPC
>>> obs = MPC.get_observatory_codes()  
>>> print(obs[295])  
Code Longitude   cos       sin         Name
---- --------- -------- --------- -------------
309 289.59569 0.909943 -0.414336 Cerro Paranal
get_observatory_codes_async(get_raw_response=False, cache=True)[source]

Table of observatory codes from the IAU Minor Planet Center.

Parameters:
get_raw_responsebool, optional

Return raw data without parsing into a table (default: False).

cachebool, optional

Cache results or use cached results (default: True).

Returns:
responserequests.Response

The HTTP response returned from the service.

References

Examples

>>> from astroquery.mpc import MPC
>>> obs = MPC.get_observatory_codes()  
>>> print(obs[295])  
Code Longitude   cos       sin         Name
---- --------- -------- --------- -------------
309 289.59569 0.909943 -0.414336 Cerro Paranal
get_observatory_location(code, cache=True)[source]

IAU observatory location.

Parameters:
codestring

Three-character IAU observatory code.

cachebool, optional

Cache observatory table or use cached results (default: True).

Returns:
longitudeAngle

Observatory longitude (east of Greenwich).

cosfloat

Parallax constant rho * cos(phi) where rho is the geocentric distance in earth radii, and phi is the geocentric latitude.

sinfloat

Parallax constant rho * sin(phi).

namestring

The name of the observatory.

Raises:
LookupError

If code is not found in the MPC table.

Examples

>>> from astroquery.mpc import MPC
>>> obs = MPC.get_observatory_location('000')
>>> print(obs)  
(<Angle 0. deg>, 0.62411, 0.77873, 'Greenwich')
query_object(*args, **kwargs)

Queries the service and returns a table object.

Query around a specific object within a given mission catalog. When searching for a comet, it will return the entry with the latest epoch.

The following are valid query parameters for the MPC API search. The params list and description are from https://minorplanetcenter.net/web_service/ and are accurate as of 3/6/2018.

Parameters:
target_typestr

Search for either a comet or an asteroid, with the two valid values being, naturally, “comet” and “asteroid”

updated_atstr

Date-time when the Orbits table was last updated (YYYY-MM-DDThh:mm:ssZ). Note: the documentation lists this field as “orbit-updated-at”, but the service response contained “updated_at”, which appears to correlate and can also be used as a query parameter.

namestr

The object’s name; e.g., Eros. This can be queried as ‘Eros’ or ‘eros’. If the object has not yet been named, this field will be ‘null’.

numberinteger

The object’s number; e.g., 433. If the object has not yet been numbered, this field will be ‘null’.

designationstr

The object’s provisional designation (e.g., 2014 AA) if it has not been numbered yet. If the object has been numbered, this number is its permanent designation and is what the ‘designation’ parameter will return, padded with leading zeroes for a total of 7 digits; e.g., ‘0000433’. When querying for provisional designations, because white spaces aren’t allowed in the query, escape the space with either a ‘+’ or ‘%20’; e.g., ‘2014+AA’ or ‘2014%20AA’.

epochstr

The date/time of reference for the current orbital parameters.

epoch_jdstr

The Julian Date of the epoch.

period (years)str

Time it takes for the object to complete one orbit around the Sun.

semimajor_axisstr

a, one half of the longest diameter of the orbital ellipse. (AU)

aphelion_distancestr

The distance when the object is furthest from the Sun in its orbit. (AU)

perihelion_distancestr

The distance when the object is nearest to the Sun in its orbit. (AU)

perihelion_datestr

Date when the object is at perihelion, i.e., reaches its closest point to the Sun.

perihelion_date_jdstr

The Julian Date of perihelion.

argument_of_perihelion (°)str

ω, defines the orientation of the ellipse in the orbital plane and is the angle from the object’s ascending node to its perihelion, measured in the direction of motion. Range: 0–360°.

ascending_node (°)str

Ω, the longitude of the ascending node, it defines the horizontal orientation of the ellipse with respect to the ecliptic, and is the angle measured counterclockwise (as seen from North of the ecliptic) from the First Point of Aries to the ascending node. Range: 0–360°.

inclination (°)str

i, the angle between the object’s orbit and the ecliptic. Range: 0–180°.

eccentricitystr

e, a measure of how far the orbit shape departs from a circle. Range: 0–1, with e = 0 being a perfect circle, intermediate values being ellipses ever more elongated as e increases, and e = 1 describing a parabola.

mean_anomaly (°)str

M, is related to the position of the object along its orbit at the given epoch. Range: 0–360°.

mean_daily_motion (°/day)str

n, a measure of the average speed of the object along its orbit.

absolute_magnitudestr

H, apparent magnitude the object would have if it were observed from 1 AU away at zero phase, while it was 1 AU away from the Sun. Note this is geometrically impossible and is equivalent to observing the object from the center of the Sun.

phase_slopestr

G, slope parameter as calculated or assumed by the MPC. The slope parameter is a measure of how much brighter the object gets as its phase angle decreases. When not known, a value of G = 0.15 is assumed.

orbit_typeinteger

Asteroids are classified from a dynamics perspective by the area of the Solar System in which they orbit. A number identifies each orbit type. 0: Unclassified (mostly Main Belters) 1: Atiras 2: Atens 3: Apollos 4: Amors 5: Mars Crossers 6: Hungarias 7: Phocaeas 8: Hildas 9: Jupiter Trojans 10: Distant Objects

delta_v (km/sec)float

Δv, an estimate of the amount of energy necessary to jump from LEO (Low Earth Orbit) to the object’s orbit.

tisserand_jupiterfloat

TJ, Tisserand parameter with respect to Jupiter, which is a quasi-invariant value for each object and is frequently used to distinguish objects (typically TJ > 3) from Jupiter-family comets (typically 2 < TJ < 3).

neobool

value = 1 flags Near Earth Objects (NEOs).

km_neobool

value = 1 flags NEOs larger than ~1 km in diameter.

phabool

value = 1 flags Potentially Hazardous Asteroids (PHAs).

mercury_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Mercury. (AU)

venus_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Venus. (AU)

earth_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Earth. (AU)

mars_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Mars. (AU)

jupiter_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Jupiter. (AU)

saturn_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Saturn. (AU)

uranus_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Uranus. (AU)

neptune_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Neptune. (AU)

Returns:
tableA Table object.
query_object_async(target_type, get_query_payload=False, *args, **kwargs)[source]

Query around a specific object within a given mission catalog. When searching for a comet, it will return the entry with the latest epoch.

The following are valid query parameters for the MPC API search. The params list and description are from https://minorplanetcenter.net/web_service/ and are accurate as of 3/6/2018.

Parameters:
target_typestr

Search for either a comet or an asteroid, with the two valid values being, naturally, “comet” and “asteroid”

updated_atstr

Date-time when the Orbits table was last updated (YYYY-MM-DDThh:mm:ssZ). Note: the documentation lists this field as “orbit-updated-at”, but the service response contained “updated_at”, which appears to correlate and can also be used as a query parameter.

namestr

The object’s name; e.g., Eros. This can be queried as ‘Eros’ or ‘eros’. If the object has not yet been named, this field will be ‘null’.

numberinteger

The object’s number; e.g., 433. If the object has not yet been numbered, this field will be ‘null’.

designationstr

The object’s provisional designation (e.g., 2014 AA) if it has not been numbered yet. If the object has been numbered, this number is its permanent designation and is what the ‘designation’ parameter will return, padded with leading zeroes for a total of 7 digits; e.g., ‘0000433’. When querying for provisional designations, because white spaces aren’t allowed in the query, escape the space with either a ‘+’ or ‘%20’; e.g., ‘2014+AA’ or ‘2014%20AA’.

epochstr

The date/time of reference for the current orbital parameters.

epoch_jdstr

The Julian Date of the epoch.

period (years)str

Time it takes for the object to complete one orbit around the Sun.

semimajor_axisstr

a, one half of the longest diameter of the orbital ellipse. (AU)

aphelion_distancestr

The distance when the object is furthest from the Sun in its orbit. (AU)

perihelion_distancestr

The distance when the object is nearest to the Sun in its orbit. (AU)

perihelion_datestr

Date when the object is at perihelion, i.e., reaches its closest point to the Sun.

perihelion_date_jdstr

The Julian Date of perihelion.

argument_of_perihelion (°)str

ω, defines the orientation of the ellipse in the orbital plane and is the angle from the object’s ascending node to its perihelion, measured in the direction of motion. Range: 0–360°.

ascending_node (°)str

Ω, the longitude of the ascending node, it defines the horizontal orientation of the ellipse with respect to the ecliptic, and is the angle measured counterclockwise (as seen from North of the ecliptic) from the First Point of Aries to the ascending node. Range: 0–360°.

inclination (°)str

i, the angle between the object’s orbit and the ecliptic. Range: 0–180°.

eccentricitystr

e, a measure of how far the orbit shape departs from a circle. Range: 0–1, with e = 0 being a perfect circle, intermediate values being ellipses ever more elongated as e increases, and e = 1 describing a parabola.

mean_anomaly (°)str

M, is related to the position of the object along its orbit at the given epoch. Range: 0–360°.

mean_daily_motion (°/day)str

n, a measure of the average speed of the object along its orbit.

absolute_magnitudestr

H, apparent magnitude the object would have if it were observed from 1 AU away at zero phase, while it was 1 AU away from the Sun. Note this is geometrically impossible and is equivalent to observing the object from the center of the Sun.

phase_slopestr

G, slope parameter as calculated or assumed by the MPC. The slope parameter is a measure of how much brighter the object gets as its phase angle decreases. When not known, a value of G = 0.15 is assumed.

orbit_typeinteger

Asteroids are classified from a dynamics perspective by the area of the Solar System in which they orbit. A number identifies each orbit type. 0: Unclassified (mostly Main Belters) 1: Atiras 2: Atens 3: Apollos 4: Amors 5: Mars Crossers 6: Hungarias 7: Phocaeas 8: Hildas 9: Jupiter Trojans 10: Distant Objects

delta_v (km/sec)float

Δv, an estimate of the amount of energy necessary to jump from LEO (Low Earth Orbit) to the object’s orbit.

tisserand_jupiterfloat

TJ, Tisserand parameter with respect to Jupiter, which is a quasi-invariant value for each object and is frequently used to distinguish objects (typically TJ > 3) from Jupiter-family comets (typically 2 < TJ < 3).

neobool

value = 1 flags Near Earth Objects (NEOs).

km_neobool

value = 1 flags NEOs larger than ~1 km in diameter.

phabool

value = 1 flags Potentially Hazardous Asteroids (PHAs).

mercury_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Mercury. (AU)

venus_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Venus. (AU)

earth_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Earth. (AU)

mars_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Mars. (AU)

jupiter_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Jupiter. (AU)

saturn_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Saturn. (AU)

uranus_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Uranus. (AU)

neptune_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Neptune. (AU)

query_objects(*args, **kwargs)

Queries the service and returns a table object.

Query around a specific object within a given mission catalog

The following are valid query parameters for the MPC API search. The params list and description are from https://minorplanetcenter.net/web_service/ and are accurate as of 3/6/2018:

Parameters:
target_typestr

Search for either a comet or an asteroid, with the two valid values being, naturally, “comet” and “asteroid”

updated_atstr

Date-time when the Orbits table was last updated (YYYY-MM-DDThh:mm:ssZ). Note: the documentation lists this field as “orbit-updated-at”, but the service response contained “updated_at”, which appears to correlate and can also be used as a query parameter.

namestr

The object’s name; e.g., Eros. This can be queried as ‘Eros’ or ‘eros’. If the object has not yet been named, this field will be ‘null’.

numberinteger

The object’s number; e.g., 433. If the object has not yet been numbered, this field will be ‘null’.

designationstr

The object’s provisional designation (e.g., 2014 AA) if it has not been numbered yet. If the object has been numbered, this number is its permanent designation and is what the ‘designation’ parameter will return, padded with leading zeroes for a total of 7 digits; e.g., ‘0000433’. When querying for provisional designations, because white spaces aren’t allowed in the query, escape the space with either a ‘+’ or ‘%20’; e.g., ‘2014+AA’ or ‘2014%20AA’.

epochstr

The date/time of reference for the current orbital parameters.

epoch_jdstr

The Julian Date of the epoch.

period (years)str

Time it takes for the object to complete one orbit around the Sun.

semimajor_axisstr

a, one half of the longest diameter of the orbital ellipse. (AU)

aphelion_distancestr

The distance when the object is furthest from the Sun in its orbit. (AU)

perihelion_distancestr

The distance when the object is nearest to the Sun in its orbit. (AU)

perihelion_datestr

Date when the object is at perihelion, i.e., reaches its closest point to the Sun.

perihelion_date_jdstr

The Julian Date of perihelion.

argument_of_perihelion (°)str

ω, defines the orientation of the ellipse in the orbital plane and is the angle from the object’s ascending node to its perihelion, measured in the direction of motion. Range: 0–360°.

ascending_node (°)str

Ω, the longitude of the ascending node, it defines the horizontal orientation of the ellipse with respect to the ecliptic, and is the angle measured counterclockwise (as seen from North of the ecliptic) from the First Point of Aries to the ascending node. Range: 0–360°.

inclination (°)str

i, the angle between the object’s orbit and the ecliptic. Range: 0–180°.

eccentricitystr

e, a measure of how far the orbit shape departs from a circle. Range: 0–1, with e = 0 being a perfect circle, intermediate values being ellipses ever more elongated as e increases, and e = 1 describing a parabola.

mean_anomaly (°)str

M, is related to the position of the object along its orbit at the given epoch. Range: 0–360°.

mean_daily_motion (°/day)str

n, a measure of the average speed of the object along its orbit.

absolute_magnitudestr

H, apparent magnitude the object would have if it were observed from 1 AU away at zero phase, while it was 1 AU away from the Sun. Note this is geometrically impossible and is equivalent to observing the object from the center of the Sun.

phase_slopestr

G, slope parameter as calculated or assumed by the MPC. The slope parameter is a measure of how much brighter the object gets as its phase angle decreases. When not known, a value of G = 0.15 is assumed.

orbit_typeinteger

Asteroids are classified from a dynamics perspective by the area of the Solar System in which they orbit. A number identifies each orbit type. 0: Unclassified (mostly Main Belters) 1: Atiras 2: Atens 3: Apollos 4: Amors 5: Mars Crossers 6: Hungarias 7: Phocaeas 8: Hildas 9: Jupiter Trojans 10: Distant Objects

delta_v (km/sec)float

Δv, an estimate of the amount of energy necessary to jump from LEO (Low Earth Orbit) to the object’s orbit.

tisserand_jupiterfloat

TJ, Tisserand parameter with respect to Jupiter, which is a quasi-invariant value for each object and is frequently used to distinguish objects (typically TJ > 3) from Jupiter-family comets (typically 2 < TJ < 3).

neobool

value = 1 flags Near Earth Objects (NEOs).

km_neobool

value = 1 flags NEOs larger than ~1 km in diameter.

phabool

value = 1 flags Potentially Hazardous Asteroids (PHAs).

mercury_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Mercury. (AU)

venus_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Venus. (AU)

earth_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Earth. (AU)

mars_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Mars. (AU)

jupiter_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Jupiter. (AU)

saturn_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Saturn. (AU)

uranus_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Uranus. (AU)

neptune_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Neptune. (AU)

limitinteger

Limit the number of results to the given value

Returns:
tableA Table object.
query_objects_async(target_type, get_query_payload=False, *args, **kwargs)[source]

Query around a specific object within a given mission catalog

The following are valid query parameters for the MPC API search. The params list and description are from https://minorplanetcenter.net/web_service/ and are accurate as of 3/6/2018:

Parameters:
target_typestr

Search for either a comet or an asteroid, with the two valid values being, naturally, “comet” and “asteroid”

updated_atstr

Date-time when the Orbits table was last updated (YYYY-MM-DDThh:mm:ssZ). Note: the documentation lists this field as “orbit-updated-at”, but the service response contained “updated_at”, which appears to correlate and can also be used as a query parameter.

namestr

The object’s name; e.g., Eros. This can be queried as ‘Eros’ or ‘eros’. If the object has not yet been named, this field will be ‘null’.

numberinteger

The object’s number; e.g., 433. If the object has not yet been numbered, this field will be ‘null’.

designationstr

The object’s provisional designation (e.g., 2014 AA) if it has not been numbered yet. If the object has been numbered, this number is its permanent designation and is what the ‘designation’ parameter will return, padded with leading zeroes for a total of 7 digits; e.g., ‘0000433’. When querying for provisional designations, because white spaces aren’t allowed in the query, escape the space with either a ‘+’ or ‘%20’; e.g., ‘2014+AA’ or ‘2014%20AA’.

epochstr

The date/time of reference for the current orbital parameters.

epoch_jdstr

The Julian Date of the epoch.

period (years)str

Time it takes for the object to complete one orbit around the Sun.

semimajor_axisstr

a, one half of the longest diameter of the orbital ellipse. (AU)

aphelion_distancestr

The distance when the object is furthest from the Sun in its orbit. (AU)

perihelion_distancestr

The distance when the object is nearest to the Sun in its orbit. (AU)

perihelion_datestr

Date when the object is at perihelion, i.e., reaches its closest point to the Sun.

perihelion_date_jdstr

The Julian Date of perihelion.

argument_of_perihelion (°)str

ω, defines the orientation of the ellipse in the orbital plane and is the angle from the object’s ascending node to its perihelion, measured in the direction of motion. Range: 0–360°.

ascending_node (°)str

Ω, the longitude of the ascending node, it defines the horizontal orientation of the ellipse with respect to the ecliptic, and is the angle measured counterclockwise (as seen from North of the ecliptic) from the First Point of Aries to the ascending node. Range: 0–360°.

inclination (°)str

i, the angle between the object’s orbit and the ecliptic. Range: 0–180°.

eccentricitystr

e, a measure of how far the orbit shape departs from a circle. Range: 0–1, with e = 0 being a perfect circle, intermediate values being ellipses ever more elongated as e increases, and e = 1 describing a parabola.

mean_anomaly (°)str

M, is related to the position of the object along its orbit at the given epoch. Range: 0–360°.

mean_daily_motion (°/day)str

n, a measure of the average speed of the object along its orbit.

absolute_magnitudestr

H, apparent magnitude the object would have if it were observed from 1 AU away at zero phase, while it was 1 AU away from the Sun. Note this is geometrically impossible and is equivalent to observing the object from the center of the Sun.

phase_slopestr

G, slope parameter as calculated or assumed by the MPC. The slope parameter is a measure of how much brighter the object gets as its phase angle decreases. When not known, a value of G = 0.15 is assumed.

orbit_typeinteger

Asteroids are classified from a dynamics perspective by the area of the Solar System in which they orbit. A number identifies each orbit type. 0: Unclassified (mostly Main Belters) 1: Atiras 2: Atens 3: Apollos 4: Amors 5: Mars Crossers 6: Hungarias 7: Phocaeas 8: Hildas 9: Jupiter Trojans 10: Distant Objects

delta_v (km/sec)float

Δv, an estimate of the amount of energy necessary to jump from LEO (Low Earth Orbit) to the object’s orbit.

tisserand_jupiterfloat

TJ, Tisserand parameter with respect to Jupiter, which is a quasi-invariant value for each object and is frequently used to distinguish objects (typically TJ > 3) from Jupiter-family comets (typically 2 < TJ < 3).

neobool

value = 1 flags Near Earth Objects (NEOs).

km_neobool

value = 1 flags NEOs larger than ~1 km in diameter.

phabool

value = 1 flags Potentially Hazardous Asteroids (PHAs).

mercury_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Mercury. (AU)

venus_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Venus. (AU)

earth_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Earth. (AU)

mars_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Mars. (AU)

jupiter_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Jupiter. (AU)

saturn_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Saturn. (AU)

uranus_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Uranus. (AU)

neptune_moidfloat

Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance with respect to Neptune. (AU)

limitinteger

Limit the number of results to the given value