209 Dido

209 Dido
Discovery
Discovered by C. H. F. Peters
Discovery date October 22, 1879
Designations
Named after
 Dido
A909 AB, A909 GB,
A912 RB
Main belt
Adjectives Didonian
Orbital characteristics
Epoch 30 January 2005 (JD 2453400.5)
Aphelion 501.211 Gm (3.35 AU)
Perihelion 440.569 Gm (2.945 AU)
470.89 Gm (3.148 AU)
Eccentricity 0.064
2039.771 d (5.58 a)
16.79 km/s
287.741°
Inclination 7.181°
0.844°
250.781°
Physical characteristics
Dimensions 140.35 ± 10.12[1] km
Mass (4.59 ± 7.42) × 1018[1] kg
5.7366[2] h
Albedo 0.035
Spectral type
 C
8.24

    209 Dido is a very large main-belt asteroid. It is classified as a C-type asteroid and is probably composed of carbonaceous materials. Like many asteroids of its type, it has an extremely low albedo.

    It was discovered by C. H. F. Peters on October 22, 1879 in Clinton, New York and was named after the mythical Carthaginian queen Dido.

    Photometric observations at the Palmer Divide Observatory during 2005 showed a rotation period of 5.7366 ± 0.0005 hours with a brightness variation of 0.17 ± 0.02 in magnitude.[2]

    References

    1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Carry, B. (December 2012), "Density of asteroids", Planetary and Space Science 73: 98–118, arXiv:1203.4336, Bibcode:2012P&SS...73...98C, doi:10.1016/j.pss.2012.03.009. See Table 1.
    2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Warner, Brian D. (December 2005), "Asteroid lightcurve analysis at the Palmer Divide Observatory - spring 2005", The Minor Planet Bulletin 32 (4): 90–92, Bibcode:2005MPBu...32...90W.

    External links