- Source: 4713 Steel
For other uses, see Steel (disambiguation).
4713 Steel, provisional designation 1989 QL, is a rare-type Hungaria asteroid from the inner regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 6 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 26 August 1989, by Scottish–Australian astronomer Robert McNaught at the Siding Spring Observatory in New South Wales, Australia. It was named after astronomer Duncan Steel.
Classification and orbit
The rare and reddish A-type asteroid is a member of the Hungaria family, which form the innermost dense concentration of asteroids in the Solar System. It orbits the Sun in the inner main-belt at a distance of 1.8–2.1 AU once every 2 years and 8 months (977 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.07 and an inclination of 23° with respect to the ecliptic.
A first precovery was taken at the discovering observatory in 1976, extending the asteroid's observation arc by 13 years prior to its official discovery observation in 1989.
Lightcurves
In May 2005, the first rotational lightcurve was obtained for this asteroid from photometric observations made by French amateur astronomer Laurent Bernasconi. It gave a rotation period of 5.186±0.004 hours with a brightness variation of 0.44 magnitude (U=3).
Between May 2010 and December 2014, American astronomer Brian D. Warner obtained another 3 well-defined lightcurves at the U.S. Palmer Divide Station, Colorado. They gave a slightly longer period of 5.193–5.203 hours with an amplitude of 0.28 to 0.42 magnitude (U=3/3/3).
Diameter and albedo
According to the survey carried out by the Japanese Akari satellite, the asteroid measures 5.6 kilometers in diameter and its surface has a high albedo of 0.424, while NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer with its subsequent NEOWISE mission determined a diameter of 6.2 and 6.3 kilometers with an albedo of 0.347 and 0.381, respectively. The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes a much lower albedo of 0.18 and calculates a larger diameter of 7.5 kilometers with an absolute magnitude of 13.1.
Naming
This minor planet was named for English-born New Zealander Duncan Steel (born 1955), astronomer and discoverer of minor planets, whose research focuses on small Solar System bodies, such as the dynamics of asteroids, comets and meteoroids, and on meteoric impact rates. He has also demonstrated that various asteroids of the Apollo group are the parents of meteor showers. The approved naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 30 March 1991 (M.P.C. 17982).
References
External links
Lightcurve plot of 4713 Steel, Palmer Divide Observatory, B. D. Warner (2011)
Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB), query form (info Archived 16 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine)
Dictionary of Minor Planet Names, Google books
Asteroids and comets rotation curves, CdR – Observatoire de Genève, Raoul Behrend
Discovery Circumstances: Numbered Minor Planets (1)-(5000) – Minor Planet Center
4713 Steel at AstDyS-2, Asteroids—Dynamic Site
Ephemeris · Observation prediction · Orbital info · Proper elements · Observational info
4713 Steel at the JPL Small-Body Database
Kata Kunci Pencarian:
- Australia
- 4713 Steel
- Duncan Steel
- Steel (disambiguation)
- A-type asteroid
- Meanings of minor-planet names: 4001–5000
- List of minor planets named after people
- Robert H. McNaught
- List of named minor planets: S
- List of named minor planets: 4000–4999
- List of Edison Blue Amberol Records: Popular Series