• Source: 9949 Brontosaurus

9949 Brontosaurus, provisional designation 1990 SK6, is a stony asteroid from the inner regions of the asteroid belt, roughly 10 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 22 September 1990, by Belgian astronomer Eric Elst at ESO's La Silla Observatory in northern Chile. It was named after Brontosaurus, a genus of dinosaurs.




Orbit and classification


Brontosaurus orbits the Sun in the inner main-belt at a distance of 2.2–2.5 AU once every 3 years and 7 months (1,319 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.06 and an inclination of 8° with respect to the ecliptic. It was first identified as 1978 GT1 at Crimea–Nauchnij in 1978, extending the body's observation arc by 12 years prior to its official discovery observation at La Silla.




Physical characteristics






= Diameter and albedo

=
According to the surveys carried out by the Infrared Astronomical Satellite IRAS and NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer with its subsequent NEOWISE mission, Brontosaurus measures 17 and 4.231 kilometers in diameter, respectively. WISE/NEOWISE also gives an albedo of 0.248 for the body's surface. It has an absolute magnitude of 13.8.




= Rotation period

=
As of 2017, the asteroid's rotation period and shape remain unknown.




Naming


This minor planet was named after Brontosaurus, a gigantic quadruped sauropod dinosaurs, which walked on all four legs and lived in the Upper Jurassic. Adult individuals measured up to 20 meters and had a weight of up to 20 tons. Many Fossils have been found in the United States. Brontosaurus is one of the best-known dinosaurs. The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 20 November 2002 (M.P.C. 47166).




References






External links


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 (5001)-(10000) – Minor Planet Center
9949 Brontosaurus at AstDyS-2, Asteroids—Dynamic Site
Ephemeris · Observation prediction · Orbital info · Proper elements · Observational info
9949 Brontosaurus at the JPL Small-Body Database

Kata Kunci Pencarian:

• 9949 Brontosaurus
• Brontosaurus (disambiguation)
• Meanings of minor-planet names: 9001–10000
• List of named minor planets: B
• Eric Walter Elst
• List of minor planets: 9001–10000
• List of named minor planets: 9000–9999
• 9950 ESA
• (9948) 1990 QB2