51 Nemausa
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| Orbital characteristics 1 | |
|---|---|
| Orbit type | Main belt |
| Semimajor axis | 2.365 AU |
| Perihelion distance | 2.207 AU |
| Aphelion distance | 2.523 AU |
| Orbital period | 3.64 years |
| Inclination | 9.97° |
| Eccentricity | 0.067 |
| Physical characteristics 1 | |
| Diameter | 147.9 km |
| Rotation period 3 | 7.783 hours |
| Spectral class | G |
| Abs. magnitude | 7.35 |
| Albedo 4 | 0.093 |
| History 2 | |
| Discoverer | A. Laurent, 1858 |
51 Nemausa (nə-mawz'-ə (key)) is a large Main belt asteroid similar to 1 Ceres in composition.
It was discovered in the city of Nîmes, France, after which it was named (in its Latin name). The discoverer was a certain "A. Laurent" who never made any more asteroid discoveries and about whom not much seems to be known.
The asteroid was discovered using the private observatory at the house formerly occupied by Benjamin Valz, who left to become the new director of the Marseille Observatory. He entrusted his former observatory to A. Laurent, who later found the asteroid. The house, at 32 rue Nationale in Nîmes, has a plaque commemorating the discovery. [1]
A small satellite has been suggested based on lightcurve data. [2]
[edit] Aspects
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| Previous minor planet | 51 Nemausa | Next minor planet |
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| 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. |
