Discovery [1] | |
---|---|
Discovered by | C. Jackson |
Discovery site | Johannesburg Obs. |
Discovery date | 5 July 1937 |
Designations | |
(1428) Mombasa | |
Named after | Mombasa (city, port) [2] |
1937 NO ·1933 WO 1949 FA ·1957 YZ | |
main-belt ·(middle) | |
Orbital characteristics [1] | |
Epoch 16 February 2017 (JD 2457800.5) | |
Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
Observation arc | 82.74 yr (30,219 days) |
Aphelion | 3.2039 AU |
Perihelion | 2.4154 AU |
2.8096 AU | |
Eccentricity | 0.1403 |
4.71 yr (1,720 days) | |
263.81° | |
0° 12m 33.48s / day | |
Inclination | 17.305° |
115.72° | |
252.61° | |
Physical characteristics | |
Dimensions | 52.464±0.268 km [3] 53.35±13.28 km [4] 55.34±0.70 km [5] 56.63±2.0 km [6] 56.83 km (derived) [7] 57.59±19.41 km [8] 62.45±0.73 km [9] 127.203±29.18 km [10] |
16.67±0.01 h [a] 17.12±0.01 h [11] 17.6±0.2 h [12] | |
0.0010±0.0099 [10] 0.0240±0.002 [6] 0.025±0.001 [5] 0.038±0.004 [9] 0.04±0.04 [8] 0.0415 (derived) [7] 0.06±0.06 [4] | |
SMASS = Xc [1] · P [10] · C [7] | |
9.95±0.74 [13] ·10.20 [8] [9] ·10.27 [4] ·10.3 [1] [7] ·10.9 [5] [6] [10] | |
1428 Mombasa, provisional designation 1937 NO, is a dark asteroid from the middle region of the asteroid belt, approximately 56 kilometers in diameter.
It was discovered on 5 July 1937, by English-born South African astronomer Cyril Jackson at Johannesburg Observatory, South Africa, and later named after Mombasa, Kenya. [2] [14]
Mombasa orbits the Sun at a distance of 2.4–3.2 AU once every 4 years and 9 months (1,720 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.14 and an inclination of 17° with respect to the ecliptic. [1] Mombasa was first identified as 1933 WO at Lowell Observatory, extending the body's observation arc by 4 years prior to its official discovery at Johannesburg. [14]
American astronomer Robert Stephens obtained a rotational lightcurve of Mombasa in June 2012. Light-curve analysis gave a rotation period of 16.67 hours with a brightness variation of 0.16 magnitude ( U=2+ ). [a] Previous lightcurves were obtained by French amateur astronomer René Roy in February 2006 (17.6 hours, Δ0.15 mag; U=2 ), [12] as well as by Scot Hawkins and Richard Ditteon at Oakley Observatory in May 2007 (17.12 hours, Δ0.25 mag; U=2 ). [11]
On the SMASS taxonomic scheme, Mombasa is a Xc-type, an intermediate between the carbonaceous C and X-type, while it is also described as a darker P-type asteroid. [10] According to the surveys carried out by the Infrared Astronomical Satellite IRAS, the Japanese Akari satellite, and NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer with its subsequent NEOWISE mission, Mombasa measures between 52.46 and 62.45 kilometers in diameter, ignoring a preliminary result of 127 km, [10] and its surface has an albedo of 0.025 and 0.06. [3] [4] [5] [6] [8] [9] The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link derives an albedo of 0.0415 and a diameter of 56.83 kilometers with an absolute magnitude of 10.3. [7]
This minor planet was named after Mombasa, chief-port and second largest city of Kenya on the coast of East Africa. [2] The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center in April 1953 ( M.P.C. 909). [15]