2063 Bacchus

2063 Bacchus
Discovery
Discovered by Charles T. Kowal
Discovery date April 24, 1977
Designations
Alternate name(s) 1977 HB
Minor planet
category
Apollo asteroid
Epoch July 14, 2004 (JD 2453200.5)
Aphelion 217.608 Gm (1.455 AU)
Perihelion 104.930 Gm (0.701 AU)
Semi-major axis 161.269 Gm (1.078 AU)
Eccentricity 0.349
Orbital period 408.825 d (1.12 a)
Average orbital speed 27.79 km/s
Mean anomaly 206.604°
Inclination 9.435°
Longitude of ascending node 33.187°
Argument of perihelion 55.214°
Physical characteristics
Dimensions 1.11×0.53×0.50 km
Mass 3.3×1012 kg
Mean density 2? g/cm³
Equatorial surface gravity 0.0004 m/s²
Escape velocity 0.0008 km/s
Rotation period 0.6208 d (14 h 54 min) 1
Albedo 0.56
Temperature ~224 K
Spectral type Q-type asteroid
Absolute magnitude (H) 17.1

The Apollo, Venus- and Mars-crosser asteroid 2063 Bacchus ( /ˈbækəs/ bak-əs) was discovered on April 24, 1977, by Charles T. Kowal at the Palomar Observatory. In March 1996 radar observations of the asteroid were conducted at the Goldstone Observatory under the direction of JPL scientists Steven Ostro and Lance Benner, allowing the construction of a model of the object.[1] Optical observations were conducted by Petr Pravec, Marek Wolf, and Lenka Šarounová during March and April 1996.

The asteroid is about 1.11×0.53×0.50 km in size and has a bilobate shape. It is classified as a Q-type asteroid.

Its name derives from the Roman god Bacchus.

References

  1. ^ Benner, L. A. M., R. S. Hudson, S. J. Ostro, K. D. Rosema, J. D. Giorgini, D. K. Yeomans, R. F. Jurgens, D. L. Mitchell, R. Winkler, R. Rose, M. A. Slade, M. L. Thomas, and P. Pravec. Radar observations of asteroid 2063 Bacchus. Icarus 139, 309-327 (1999)

External links