5145 Pholus
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Discovery A | |
|---|---|
| Discoverer | Spacewatch (David L. Rabinowitz) |
| Discovery date | January 9, 1992 |
| Alternate designations B |
1992 AD |
| Category | Centaur, Asteroid |
| Orbital elements C | |
|
|
|
| Eccentricity (e) | 0.573 |
| Semi-major axis (a) | 3056.379 Gm (20.431 AU) |
| Perihelion (q) | 1306.224 Gm (8.732 AU) |
| Aphelion (Q) | 4806.533 Gm (32.130 AU) |
| Orbital period (P) | 33730.363 d (92.35 a) |
| Mean orbital speed | 6.01 km/s |
| Inclination (i) | 24.685° |
| Longitude of the ascending node (Ω) |
119.332° |
| Argument of perihelion (ω) |
355.225° |
| Mean anomaly (M) | 55.230° |
| Physical characteristics D | |
| Dimensions | 185±16 km [1] |
| Mass | ~6.6×1018 kg |
| Density | 2.0? g/cm³ |
| Surface gravity | ~0.052 m/s² |
| Escape velocity | ~0.098 km/s |
| Rotation period | 9.983 hours |
| Spectral class | (red) B-V=1.19; V-R=0.78 [1] |
| Absolute magnitude | 7.64 |
| Albedo (geometric) | 0.046±0.02 |
| Mean surface temperature |
~62 K |
5145 Pholus ("FOE luss") is a Centaur in an eccentric orbit, with a perihelion near the orbit of Saturn and aphelion near the orbit of Neptune. It is believed to have originated as a Kuiper belt object.
It was discovered by David L. Rabinowitz, then of the University of Arizona's Spacewatch Project, and named by him after Pholus, the brother of the mythological Chiron, after which 2060 Chiron was named.
Pholus was the second Centaur type asteroid to be discovered and was quickly found to be quite red in color, for which it has been occasionally nicknamed "Big Red". The color has been speculated to be due to organic compounds on its surface. (Wilson, et al., 1994) Unlike the first Centaur, 2060 Chiron, Pholus has shown no signs of cometary activity.
The diameter of Pholus is estimated to be 185±16 km [2].
[edit] References
- ^ Tegler, Stephen C. (2006-01-26). Kuiper Belt Object Magnitudes and Surface Colors. Retrieved on 2006-11-05.
- Wilson PD, Sagan C, Thompson WR (1994). "The organic surface of 5145 Pholus: constraints set by scattering theory". Icarus 107: 288-303. PMID 11539180
 |
This article about a centaur or trans-Neptunian object is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
| Minor planets | ||
|---|---|---|
| Previous minor planet | 5145 Pholus | Next minor planet |
|
|
|---|
| Vulcanoids | Near-Earth asteroids | Main belt | Jupiter Trojans | Centaurs | Damocloids | Comets | Trans-Neptunians (Kuiper belt · Scattered disc · Oort cloud) |
| For other objects and regions, see: asteroid groups and families, binary asteroids, asteroid moons and the Solar system For a complete listing, see: List of asteroids. See also Pronunciation of asteroid names and Meanings of asteroid names. |
