Astronomy:45737 Benita

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45737 Benita
Discovery [1]
Discovered byB. A. Segal
Discovery siteJupiter Obs.
Discovery date22 April 2000
Designations
(45737) Benita
Named afterBenita Segal [2]
(discoverer's wife)
2000 HB
Minor planet categorymain-belt · (outer)
background[3]
Orbital characteristics[1]
Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Observation arc19.41 yr (7,091 days)
|{{{apsis}}}|helion}}3.3441 AU
|{{{apsis}}}|helion}}3.0485 AU
3.1963 AU
Eccentricity0.0462
Orbital period5.71 yr (2,087 days)
Mean anomaly245.14°
Mean motion0° 10m 21s / day
Inclination10.197°
Longitude of ascending node181.43°
124.47°
Physical characteristics
Dimensions5.121±1.701 km[4]
Geometric albedo0.294±0.080[4]
Absolute magnitude (H)13.6[1]


45737 Benita (provisional designation 2000 HB) is a bright asteroid located in the outer regions of the asteroid belt. It has an estimated diameter of approximately 5 kilometers. The asteroid was discovered on April 22, 2000, by Bruce Segal, an American amateur astronomer, at the Florida Atlantic University's Jupiter Observatory (837) in Boca Raton, Florida.[1][5]

Orbit and classification

Benita is a non-family asteroid that belongs to the background population of the main belt.[3] It orbits the Sun in the outer region of the asteroid belt, at a distance of 3.0–3.3 AU. It completes one orbit around the Sun every 5 years and 9 months (2,087 days) with a semi-major axis of approximately 3.20 AU. The orbit of Benita is slightly eccentric, with an eccentricity of 0.05, and it is inclined at an angle of 10° with respect to the ecliptic plane.[1] The body's observation arc begins with a precovery taken at Lincoln Laboratory's ETS, New Mexico, on 30 October 1997.[5]

Physical characteristics

Diameter and albedo

According to the survey carried out by the NEOWISE mission of NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, Benita measures 5.121 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo of 0.294.[4]

Rotation period

As of 2017, no rotational lightcurve of Benita has been obtained from photometric observations. The body's rotation period, poles and shape remain unknown.[6]

Naming

The discoverer named this minor planet after his wife, Benita Segal (born 1964), a major supporter of the observatory.[2] The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 20 November 2002 (M.P.C. 47170).[7]

References

External links