8026 Johnmckay

8026 Johnmckay
Discovery [1]
Discovered by E. F. Helin
Discovery site Palomar Obs.
Discovery date 8 May 1991
Designations
MPC designation 8026 Johnmckay
Named after
 John B. McKay
(test pilot)[2]
1991 JA1 · 1989 UF2
main-belt (inner) · Hungaria [3]
Orbital characteristics [1]
Epoch 27 June 2015 (JD 2457200.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Observation arc 25.81 yr (9,427 days)
Aphelion 2.0698 AU
Perihelion 1.7802 AU
1.9250 AU
Eccentricity 0.0752
2.67 yr (976 days)
246.14°
Inclination 19.934°
217.71°
145.76°
Known satellites 1 [4]
Physical characteristics
Dimensions 1.690±0.239 km[5]
2.54 km (calculated)[3]
2.2981±0.0005 h[6]
355±5 h[7]
0.8148±0.1957[5]
0.30 (assumed)[3]
E [3]
14.9[1]

    8026 Johnmckay, provisional designation 1991 JA1, is a bright, binary[4] asteroid from the inner regions of the asteroid belt, about 2 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered by American female astronomer Eleanor Helin at the U.S. Palomar Observatory, California, on 8 May 1991.[2]

    The bright E-type asteroid is a member of the Hungaria family, which form the innermost dense concentration of asteroids in the Solar System. It orbits the Sun at a distance of 1.8–2.1 AU once every 2 years and 8 months (976 days). Its orbit is tilted by 20 degrees to the plane of the ecliptic and shows an eccentricity of 0.08. In 2010, a photometric light-curve analysis at the U.S. Palmer Divide Station in Colorado has rendered rotation period of 2.2981±0.0005 hours with a brightness amplitude of 0.10 in magnitude.[6]

    According to the survey carried out by the NEOWISE mission of the U.S. Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, the body's surface has an exceptionally high albedo of 0.81, while the Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link (CALL) assumes a more realistic value of 0.30, which is typical for bright E-type asteroids.[3][5]

    The asteroid was discovered in 2010 to have a small asteroid moon around it, orbiting it every 2.300±0.001 hours.[4]

    The minor planet was named in memory of NASA research pilot John B. McKay (1922–1975), who was the fifth pilot to fly the North American X-15 and made a total of 29 flights. Before joining the X-15 program, he made 46 flights in the X-1 and D-558-II Skyrocket. In 2005, he received posthumous NASA astronaut wings for a flight that reached an altitude of 89,900 metres (294,900 feet).[2]

    References

    1. 1 2 3 "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 8026 Johnmckay (1991 JA1)" (2015-08-19 last obs.). Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved January 2016.
    2. 1 2 3 "8026 Johnmckay (1991 JA1)". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved January 2016.
    3. 1 2 3 4 5 "LCDB Data for (8026) Johnmckay". Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB). Retrieved January 2016.
    4. 1 2 3 Johnston, Robert. "(8026) Johnmckay". johnstonsarchive.net. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
    5. 1 2 3 Mainzer, A.; Grav, T.; Masiero, J.; Hand, E.; Bauer, J.; Tholen, D.; et al. (November 2011). "NEOWISE Studies of Spectrophotometrically Classified Asteroids: Preliminary Results". The Astrophysical Journal 741 (2): 25. Bibcode:2011ApJ...741...90M. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/741/2/90. Retrieved January 2016.
    6. 1 2 Warner, Brian D. (January 2011). "A Quartet of Known and Suspected Hungaria Binary Asteroids". Bulletin of the Minor Planets (Section of the Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers) 38 (1): 33–36. Bibcode:2011MPBu...38...33W. ISSN 1052-8091. Retrieved January 2016.
    7. ↑ Warner, Brian D. (October 2015). "Asteroid Lightcurve Analysis at CS3-Palmer Divide Station: 2015 March-June". Bulletin of the Minor Planets (Section of the Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers) 42 (4): 267–276. Bibcode:2015MPBu...42..267W. ISSN 1052-8091. Retrieved January 2016.

    External links


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