50 Virginia
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Discovery
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| Discovered by | Karl Theodor Robert Luther |
| Discovery date | October 4, 1857 |
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Designations
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| Alternative names | |
| Minor planet category |
Main belt |
| Epoch December 31, 2006 (JD 2454100.5) | |
| Aphelion | 509.817 Gm (3.408 AU) |
| Perihelion | 283.389 Gm (1.894 AU) |
| Semi-major axis | 396.603 Gm (2.651 AU) |
| Eccentricity | 0.285 |
| Orbital period | 1576.682 d (4.32 a) |
| Average orbital speed | 17.91 km/s |
| Mean anomaly | 210.994° |
| Inclination | 2.834° |
| Longitude of ascending node | 173.773° |
| Argument of perihelion | 199.961° |
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Physical characteristics
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| Dimensions | 99.8 km |
| Mass | 1.0×1018 kg |
| Mean density | ? g/cm³ |
| Equatorial surface gravity | 0.0279 m/s² |
| Escape velocity | 0.0528 km/s |
| Rotation period | 14.31 h[1] |
| Albedo | 0.036 [2] |
| Temperature | ~171 K |
| Spectral type | Ch |
| Absolute magnitude | 9.24 |
50 Virginia is a large, very dark Main belt asteroid. It was discovered by J. Ferguson on October 4, 1857. R. Luther found it independently on October 19, and his discovery was announced first. The reason for Virginia's name is not known. It is probably named after Verginia, the Roman noblewoman slain by her father, but it may alternatively have been named after the American state of Virginia.
[edit] References
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