1272 Gefion

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1272 Gefion
Discovery [1]
Discovered by K. Reinmuth
Discovery site Heidelberg Obs.
Discovery date10 October 1931
Designations
(1272) Gefion
Pronunciation /ˈɡeɪfiɒn/ or /ˈɡɛfiɒn/ [2]
Named after
 Gefjon [3]
(Norse mythology)
1931 TZ1 ·A917 SF
main-belt  ·(middle)
Gefion [4]
Adjectives Gefionian /ɡɛfiˈoʊniən/ [5]
Orbital characteristics [1]
Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Observation arc 99.50 yr (36,344 days)
Aphelion 3.2076 AU
Perihelion 2.3604 AU
2.7840 AU
Eccentricity 0.1521
4.65 yr (1,697 days)
215.36°
0° 12m 43.92s / day
Inclination 8.4185°
321.56°
3.6671°
Physical characteristics
Dimensions6.965±0.169 km [6]
7.016±0.066 km [7]
12.62 km (calculated) [8]
2.900±0.0012 h [9]
3.087±0.0005 h [9]
0.057 (assumed) [8]
0.2489±0.0256 [7]
0.252±0.041 [6]
SMASS = Sl [1]
C (assumed) [8]
12.785±0.005(R) [9]  ·12.9 [7]  ·13.0 [1]  ·13.01±0.21 [10]  ·13.22 [8]

    1272 Gefion, provisional designation 1931 TZ1, is a stony asteroid and parent body of the Gefion family from the central region of the asteroid belt, approximately 7 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 10 October 1931, by astronomer Karl Reinmuth at the Heidelberg Observatory in Germany. The asteroid was named after Gefjon from Norse mythology. [3]

    Contents

    Orbit and classification

    Gefion is the namesake and parent body of the Gefion family ( 516 ), [4] a large family of stony asteroids in the intermediate main belt. [11] : 23  The family is also a suspected source of the L chondrites, common group of meteorites. [12]

    It orbits the Sun in the central main-belt at a distance of 2.4–3.2  AU once every 4 years and 8 months (1,697 days; semi-major axis of 2.78 AU). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.15 and an inclination of 8° with respect to the ecliptic. [1]

    The asteroid was first identified as A917 SF at Heidelberg in September 1917. The body's observation arc begins at Heidelberg, six days after its official discovery observation. [13]

    Physical characteristics

    In the SMASS classification, Gefion is a Sl-subtype that transitions from the common stony S-type asteroids to the rather rare L-types. [1]

    Rotation period

    In 2010 and 2011, two rotational lightcurves of Gefion were obtained from photometric observations in the R-band by astronomers at the Palomar Transient Factory in California . Lightcurve analysis gave a rotation period of 2.900 and 3.087 hours with a brightness amplitude of 0.22 and 0.20 magnitude, respectively ( U=2/2 ). [9]

    Diameter and albedo

    According to the survey carried out by the NEOWISE mission of NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, Gefion measures between 6.965 and 7.016 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo between 0.2489 and 0.252. [6] [7] The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes a standard albedo for carbonaceous asteroids of 0.057 and consequently calculates a much larger diameter of 12.62 kilometers based on an absolute magnitude of 13.22. [8]

    Naming

    This minor planet was named after Gefjon a goddess in Norse mythology. It is also named for the Gefion Fountain in Copenhagen, Denmark. The official naming citation was mentioned in The Names of the Minor Planets by Paul Herget in 1955 ( H 117 ). [3]

    Related Research Articles

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    <span class="mw-page-title-main">1073 Gellivara</span> Asteroid

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    <span class="mw-page-title-main">1050 Meta</span> Stony, main-belt asteroid of the Eunomia family

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    51828 Ilanramon, provisional designation 2001 OU39, is a Gefionian asteroid from the central regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 5.5 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 20 July 2001, by astronomers of the Near-Earth Asteroid Tracking program at Palomar Observatory in California, United States. The asteroid was named in memory of Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon, who died in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster.

    1168 Brandia, provisional designation 1930 QA, is a stony Eunomian asteroid from the central regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 10 kilometers in diameter. Discovered by astronomer Eugène Delporte at Uccle Observatory in 1930, the asteroid was later named after mathematician Eugène Brand.

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    3724 Annenskij, provisional designation 1979 YN8, is a stony Gefionian asteroid from the central regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 14 kilometers (9 miles) in diameter. It was discovered on 23 December 1979, by Soviet astronomer Lyudmila Zhuravleva at the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory in Nauchnij, on the Crimean peninsula. The S-type asteroid has a rotation period of 3.97 hours. It was named for Russian poet Innokenty Annensky.

    1253 Frisia, provisional designation 1931 TV1, is a carbonaceous Themistian asteroid from the outer regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 20 kilometers in diameter. Discovered by Karl Reinmuth at Heidelberg Observatory in 1931, the asteroid was later named after the region of Frisia and the Frisian Islands.

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    1297 Quadea, provisional designation 1934 AD, is an Eoan asteroid from the outer regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 23 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 7 January 1934, by astronomer Karl Reinmuth at the Heidelberg-Königstuhl State Observatory in Germany. The asteroid was named for the parents-in-law of the discoverer's brother.

    1405 Sibelius, provisional designation 1936 RE, is a stony Florian asteroid from the inner regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 8 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 12 September 1936, by Finnish astronomer Yrjö Väisälä at Turku Observatory in Southwest Finland. The asteroid was named after composer Jean Sibelius.

    2169 Taiwan, provisional designation 1964 VP1, is a carbonaceous Astridian asteroid from the central regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 17 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 9 November 1964, by astronomers at the Purple Mountain Observatory near Nanking, China. It was named for Taiwan.

    2443 Tomeileen, provisional designation A906 BJ, is a stony Eoan asteroid from the outer regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 32 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 24 January 1906, by German astronomer Max Wolf at the Heidelberg-Königstuhl State Observatory in Heidelberg, Germany. The S-type asteroid was named after the parents of British astronomer Brian G. Marsden. It has a rotation period of 3.97 hours.

    1734 Zhongolovich, provisional designation 1928 TJ, is a carbonaceous Dorian asteroid from the central region of the asteroid belt, approximately 28 kilometers in diameter.

    3703 Volkonskaya, provisional designation 1978 PU3, is a Vestian asteroid and asynchronous binary system from the inner regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) in diameter. It was discovered on 9 August 1978, by Soviet astronomers Lyudmila Chernykh and Nikolai Chernykh at the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory in Nauchnij, on the Crimean peninsula. It was named by the discoverers after the Russian princess Mariya Volkonskaya. The V-type asteroid has a rotation period of 3.2 hours. The discovery of its 1.4-kilometer minor-planet moon was announced in December 2005.

    References

    1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 1272 Gefion (1931 TZ1)" (2017-03-29 last obs.). Jet Propulsion Laboratory . Retrieved 17 November 2017.
    2. ↑ Joseph Thomas (1915) Universal Pronouncing Dictionary of Biography and Mythology
    3. 1 2 3 Schmadel, Lutz D. (2007). "(1272) Gefion". Dictionary of Minor Planet Names. Springer Berlin Heidelberg. p. 105. doi:10.1007/978-3-540-29925-7_1273. ISBN   978-3-540-00238-3.
    4. 1 2 "Asteroid 1272 Gefion – Nesvorny HCM Asteroid Families V3.0". Small Bodies Data Ferret. Retrieved 26 October 2019.
    5. ↑ Charles Dickens, ed. 1861. All the year round, 4:445.
    6. 1 2 3 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. arXiv: 1109.4096 . Bibcode:2011ApJ...741...68M. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/741/2/68 . Retrieved 17 November 2017.
    7. 1 2 3 4 Mainzer, A.; Grav, T.; Masiero, J.; Hand, E.; Bauer, J.; Tholen, D.; et al. (November 2011). "NEOWISE Studies of Spectrophotometrically Classified Asteroids: Preliminary Results". The Astrophysical Journal. 741 (2): 25. arXiv: 1109.6407 . Bibcode:2011ApJ...741...90M. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/741/2/90.
    8. 1 2 3 4 5 "LCDB Data for (1272) Gefion". Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB). Retrieved 17 November 2017.
    9. 1 2 3 4 Waszczak, Adam; Chang, Chan-Kao; Ofek, Eran O.; Laher, Russ; Masci, Frank; Levitan, David; et al. (September 2015). "Asteroid Light Curves from the Palomar Transient Factory Survey: Rotation Periods and Phase Functions from Sparse Photometry". The Astronomical Journal. 150 (3): 35. arXiv: 1504.04041 . Bibcode:2015AJ....150...75W. doi:10.1088/0004-6256/150/3/75 . Retrieved 17 November 2017.
    10. ↑ Veres, Peter; Jedicke, Robert; Fitzsimmons, Alan; Denneau, Larry; Granvik, Mikael; Bolin, Bryce; et al. (November 2015). "Absolute magnitudes and slope parameters for 250,000 asteroids observed by Pan-STARRS PS1 - Preliminary results". Icarus. 261: 34–47. arXiv: 1506.00762 . Bibcode:2015Icar..261...34V. doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2015.08.007 . Retrieved 17 November 2017.
    11. ↑ Nesvorný, D.; Broz, M.; Carruba, V. (December 2014). "Identification and Dynamical Properties of Asteroid Families". Asteroids IV. pp. 297–321. arXiv: 1502.01628 . Bibcode:2015aste.book..297N. doi:10.2458/azu_uapress_9780816532131-ch016. ISBN   978-0-8165-3213-1.
    12. ↑ Nesvorný, David; Vokrouhlický, David; Morbidelli, Alessandro; Bottke, William F. (April 2009). "Asteroidal source of L chondrite meteorites" (PDF). Icarus. 200 (2): 698–701. Bibcode:2009Icar..200..698N. doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2008.12.016 . Retrieved 17 November 2017.
    13. ↑ "1272 Gefion (1931 TZ1)". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
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