878 Mildred
| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | S. B. Nicholson and H. Shapley |
| Discovery site | Mount Wilson |
| Discovery date | 1916-09-06 |
| Designations | |
| 1916 f; 1985 VG6; 1991 GZ8 | |
Main belt  Nysa[2] | |
| Orbital characteristics[3] | |
| Epoch 2008-05-14 (JD 2454600.5) | |
| Aphelion | 2.8942342 AU |
| Perihelion | 1.8278436 AU |
| 2.3610389 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.2258308 |
| 3.63 year | |
| 104.08321° | |
| Inclination | 2.05983° |
| 172.87244° | |
| 189.87119° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | ~4 km[4] |
Spectral type | S[2] |
| 15.0[3] | |
|
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878 Mildred is a minor planet in the main belt orbiting the Sun. It is the lowest numbered, and thus the namesake, of the Mildred family of asteroids, a subgroup of the Nysa family.[2] The Mildred subgroup, and by extension 878 Mildred itself, is thought to have been formed by a recent fragmentation event from a larger asteroid.[2]
Discovery
878 Mildred was originally discovered in 1916 using the 1.5 m Hale Telescope at the Mount Wilson Observatory, but was subsequently lost until it was again observed on single nights in 1985 and 1991 (a lost asteroid).[1] Initially only two observations of the asteroid were taken on 1916-09-06 which does not allow for an accurate orbital determination, however interest in the object prompted further investigation and more measurements were taken in late September and October.[4] The asteroid was re-discovered in 1991 by Gareth V. Williams.[5]
Physical properties
By comparing the asteroid's perceived brightness and the then computed distance from the Sun they arrived at an absolute visual magnitude of 14.3, which if one assumes Mars-like albedo gives an approximate diameter of 3 to 5 kilometers.[4]
External links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "IAU Circular: IAUC 5275". 1991-05-25.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Cellino, A. et al. (August 2001). "The Puzzling Case of the Nysa–Polana Family". Icarus 152 (2): 225–237. Bibcode:2001Icar..152..225C. doi:10.1006/icar.2001.6634.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 878 Mildred at the JPL Small-Body Database
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Shapley, H.; Nicholson, S. B. (1917). "The Orbit and Probable Size of a Very Faint Asteroid (878) Mildred". Astronomical Journal 30 (710): 127–128. Bibcode:1917AJ.....30..127S. doi:10.1086/104199.
- ↑ "MPC staff - Gareth Williams". Minor Planet Center. International Astronomical Union. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
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