Astronomy:46610 Bésixdouze
| Discovery [1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | K. Endate K. Watanabe |
| Discovery site | Kitami Obs. |
| Discovery date | 15 October 1993 |
| Designations | |
| (46610) Bésixdouze | |
| Pronunciation | French pronunciation: [be.sis.duːz] |
| Named after | Asteroid B-612 [2] (home of The Little Prince) |
| 1993 TQ1 · 1986 RU7 2000 VV32 | |
| Minor planet category | main-belt [1] · {(inner) background [3] |
| Orbital characteristics [1] | |
| Epoch 23 March 2018 (JD 2458200.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 31.55 yr (11,525 days) |
| |{{{apsis}}}|helion}} | 2.6816 AU |
| |{{{apsis}}}|helion}} | 1.8581 AU |
| 2.2698 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.1814 |
| Orbital period | 3.42 yr (1,249 days) |
| Mean anomaly | 52.86° |
| Mean motion | 0° 17m 17.52s / day |
| Inclination | 2.4053° |
| Longitude of ascending node | 172.13° |
| 211.83° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 2.064±0.499 km[4] |
| Geometric albedo | 0.262±0.054[4] |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 15.4[1] |
46610 Bésixdouze (French pronunciation: [be.sis.duːz]; provisional designation 1993 TQ1) is a bright background asteroid from the inner regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 2 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 15 October 1993, by Japanese amateur astronomers Kin Endate and Kazuro Watanabe at the Kitami Observatory in eastern Hokkaidō, Japan.[5] The asteroid was named after "B-612", home of The Little Prince.[2]
Orbit and classification
Bésixdouze is a non-family asteroid from the main belt's background population.[3] It orbits the Sun in the inner main-belt at a distance of 1.9–2.7 AU once every 3 years and 5 months (1,249 days; semi-major axis of 2.27 AU). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.18 and an inclination of 2° with respect to the ecliptic.[1]
The asteroid was first identified as 1986 RU7 at Crimea–Nauchnij in a single image taken in September 1986.[1][5]
Physical characteristics
Diameter and albedo
According to the survey carried out by the NEOWISE mission of NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, Bésixdouze measures 2.064 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo of 0.262,[4] which is indicative for a stony composition.
Rotation period
As of 2018, no rotational lightcurve of Bésixdouze has been obtained from photometric observations. The body's rotation period, poles and shape remain unknown.[1][6]
Naming
The name was suggested by F. Hemery and Jiří Grygar as a reference to the French novella The Little Prince. The title character lived on an asteroid named B-612, which is the number 46610 written in hexadecimal notation. Bésixdouze (French pronunciation: [be.sis.duːz]; "B-six-twelve") is one way to pronounce B-612 in French.[2] Like the asteroid in The Little Prince, Bésixdouze was first observed in a single night, several years before its official discovery.[5]
The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 20 November 2002 (M.P.C. 47170).[7] It says:
"The decimal number 46610 translates to the hexadecimal B612, the designation of the fictitious minor planet in de St. Exupéry's 1943 novel Le Petit Prince. B612 was allegedly spotted on a single night in 1909 and reported at a meeting in 1920. The name was suggested independently by F. Hémery and J. Grygar."[1]
See also
- 2578 Saint-Exupéry
- B612 Foundation
- Petit-Prince (moon)
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 46610 Besixdouze (1993 TQ1)". Jet Propulsion Laboratory. https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=2046610.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Schmadel, Lutz D. (2007). "(46610) Bésixdouze". Dictionary of Minor Planet Names – (46610) Bésixdouze. Springer Berlin Heidelberg. p. 895. doi:10.1007/978-3-540-29925-7_10040. ISBN 978-3-540-00238-3.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Asteroid 46610 Besixdouze – Proper Elements". AstDyS-2, Asteroids – Dynamic Site. https://newton.spacedys.com/astdys/index.php?pc=1.1.6&n=46610.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Masiero, Joseph R.; Mainzer, A. K.; Grav, T.; Bauer, J. M.; Cutri, R. M.; Dailey, J. et al. (November 2011). "Main Belt Asteroids with WISE/NEOWISE. I. Preliminary Albedos and Diameters". The Astrophysical Journal 741 (2): 20. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/741/2/68. Bibcode: 2011ApJ...741...68M. http://adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/bib_query?bibcode=2011ApJ...741...68M. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "46610 Besixdouze (1993 TQ1)". Minor Planet Center. https://www.minorplanetcenter.net/db_search/show_object?object_id=46610.
- ↑ "LCDB Data for (46610) Bésixdouze". Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB). http://www.minorplanet.info/PHP/generateOneAsteroidInfo.php?AstInfo=46610%7CBésixdouze.
- ↑ "MPC/MPO/MPS Archive". Minor Planet Center. https://www.minorplanetcenter.net/iau/ECS/MPCArchive/MPCArchive_TBL.html.
External links
- Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB), query form (info )
- Dictionary of Minor Planet Names, Google books
- Asteroids and comets rotation curves, CdR – Observatoire de Genève, Raoul Behrend
- Discovery Circumstances: Numbered Minor Planets (45001)-(50000) – Minor Planet Center
- 46610 Bésixdouze at AstDyS-2, Asteroids—Dynamic Site
- 46610 Bésixdouze at the JPL Small-Body Database
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