| Discovery [1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | C. Jackson |
| Discovery site | Johannesburg Obs. |
| Discovery date | 28 May 1935 |
| Designations | |
| (1712) Angola | |
Named after | Angola (country) [2] |
| 1935 KC ·1929 GC 1935 ML ·1946 JB 1953 SD ·1963 MD | |
| main-belt ·(outer) [3] | |
| Orbital characteristics [1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 87.94 yr (32,121 days) |
| Aphelion | 3.6492 AU |
| Perihelion | 2.6832 AU |
| 3.1662 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.1525 |
| 5.63 yr (2,058 days) | |
| 190.35° | |
| 0° 10m 29.64s / day | |
| Inclination | 19.393° |
| 237.61° | |
| 18.217° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 59.31 km (derived) [3] 59.48±2.3 km [4] 64.904±1.218 km [5] 66.892±0.298 [6] 70.07±1.03 km [7] 74.47±0.68 km [8] |
| 11.527 h [3] 11.5274±0.0007 h [9] 11.53 h [9] | |
| 0.029±0.003 [8] [6] 0.043±0.002 [7] 0.0458 (derived) [3] 0.0504±0.0126 [5] 0.0600±0.005 [4] | |
| P [5] · C [3] | |
| 9.8 [4] [5] [7] ·10.1 [1] [3] [8] ·10.15±0.24 [10] | |
1712 Angola, provisional designation 1935 KC, is a dark asteroid from the outer regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 66 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 28 May 1935, by English-born South African astronomer Cyril Jackson at Johannesburg Observatory in South Africa. [11] It is named after the Republic of Angola. [2]
Angola orbits the Sun in the outer main-belt at a distance of 2.7–3.6 AU once every 5 years and 8 months (2,058 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.15 and an inclination of 19° with respect to the ecliptic. [1] Angola was first identified as 1929 GC at Johannesburg in 1929, extending the body's observation arc by 6 years prior to its official discovery observation. [11]
In July 2003, French amateur astronomer René Roy obtained a rotational lightcurve of Angola. It gave a well-defined rotation period of 11.5274 hours with a brightness variation of 0.38 magnitude ( U=3 ). [9] Photometric observations by ESO's CCD-specialist Cyril Cavadore gave an identical period of 11.53 hours with an insufficient amplitude of 0.02 magnitude ( U=1 ). [9]
According to the surveys carried out by the Infrared Astronomical Satellite IRAS, the Japanese Akari satellite, and NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) with its subsequent NEOWISE mission, Angola measures between 59.48 and 70.07 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo between 0.029 and 0.060. [4] [6] [7] [8] The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link derives an albedo of 0.0458 and a diameter of 59.31 kilometers based on an absolute magnitude of 10.1. [3] The carbonaceous C-type asteroid is also classified a dark P type by WISE. [5]
This minor planet is named for Angola, the state on the southwestern coast of Africa. [2] The approved naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 1 February 1980 ( M.P.C. 5183). [12]
