Astronomy:83 Beatrix

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Short description: Main-belt asteroid
83 Beatrix
Discovery
Discovered byAnnibale de Gasparis
Discovery dateApril 26, 1865
Designations
(83) Beatrix
Pronunciation/ˈbətrɪks/[1]
Named afterBeatrice Portinari
Minor planet categoryMain belt
AdjectivesBeatrician /bəˈtrɪʃən/[2]
Orbital characteristics
Epoch December 31, 2006 (JD 2454100.5)
|{{{apsis}}}|helion}}393.528 Gm (2.631 AU)
|{{{apsis}}}|helion}}334.023 Gm (2.233 AU)
363.776 Gm (2.432 AU)
Eccentricity0.082
Orbital period1385.035 d (3.79 a)
Average Orbital speed19.07 km/s
Mean anomaly141.862°
Inclination4.966°
Longitude of ascending node27.800°
167.170°
Physical characteristics
Dimensions81.4 km
Mass5.6×1017 kg
Rotation period10.11 hours
Geometric albedo0.092 [3]
X
Absolute magnitude (H)8.66


Beatrix (minor planet designation: 83 Beatrix) is a fairly large asteroid orbiting in the inner part of the main asteroid belt. It was discovered by Annibale de Gasparis on April 26, 1865. It was his last asteroid discovery. A diameter of at least 68 kilometres (42 mi) was determined from the Beatrician stellar occultation observed on June 15, 1983. It is named for Beatrice Portinari,[4] beloved of Dante Alighieri and immortalized by him in La Vita Nuova and The Divine Comedy.

On February 16, 2001, an occultation of a magnitude +9.09 star by this asteroid was observed from three locations. The resulting chords matched an elliptical profile with a mean radius of 35.9 km. The observers noted some dimming and flickering at the beginning of the event, which may indicate the star was binary or the asteroid has an irregular shape. Previous occultations had been observed in 1983 and 1990, which produced a much larger size estimate of 81.4 km.[5]

thumb|left|Beatrician orbit

References

  1. Noah Webster (1884) A Practical Dictionary of the English Language
  2. Beatrician (3rd ed.), Oxford University Press, September 2005, http://oed.com/search?searchType=dictionary&q=Beatrician  (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  3. Asteroid Data Sets
  4. (83) Beatrix In: Dictionary of Minor Planet Names. Springer. 2003. doi:10.1007/978-3-540-29925-7_84. ISBN 978-3-540-29925-7. 
  5. Povenmire, H.; Bookamer, R. (September 2001), "The Feb. 16, 2001 Asteroid (83) Beatrix Occultation", Meteoritics & Planetary Science 36: A166, Bibcode2001M&PSA..36R.166P. 

External links