Spotting Patientia with a small telescope
A practical guide to finding a 10th-magnitude asteroid — and proving that you found it.
Published 2026-10-23
Patientia was a late discovery, found in 1899, yet it gets surprisingly bright.[2] At favourable oppositions it reached about magnitude 10.7 in January 2013 and 10.4 in December 2017, and it regularly reaches 11th magnitude.[2]
Why it stays visible
Its orbit is nearly circular (eccentricity about 0.07), so its distance from the Sun changes only from 2.85 to 3.28 AU.[1] Oppositions differ less than for asteroids on very stretched orbits.
What you need
- A telescope of about 100 mm or larger.
- A planetarium app or chart showing the asteroid’s position for your date — apps use orbital elements such as JPL’s.[1]
- A low-power eyepiece to identify the star field.
Confirming the find
- Sketch or photograph the field, marking the “star” at the predicted spot.
- Return the next night: one point of light will have moved.
- Compare with the predicted track.
At 250 km across and about 3 AU away, Patientia will look exactly like a star — the motion is the proof.[1]
Numbered citations link to the sources list on the Patientia overview page.