From Surf Wiki (app.surf) — the open knowledge base

51824 Mikeanderson

Main-belt asteroid

Field	Value
minorplanet	yes
name	51824 Mikeanderson
background	#D6D6D6
discovery_ref
discoverer	NEAT
discovery_site	Palomar Obs.
discovered	19 July 2001
mpc_name	(51824) Mikeanderson
alt_names
named_after	Michael P. Anderson
(American astronaut)
mp_category	main-belt(outer)
Eos
orbit_ref
epoch	4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5)
uncertainty	0
observation_arc	56.95 yr (20,802 days)
aphelion	3.3400 AU
perihelion	2.6702 AU
semimajor	3.0051 AU
eccentricity	0.1114
period	5.21 yr (1,903 days)
mean_anomaly	2.6722°
mean_motion	/ day
inclination	9.7722°
asc_node	334.41°
arg_peri	358.39°
dimensions	km
albedo
abs_magnitude	14.4

(American astronaut) Eos

51824 Mikeanderson (provisional designation ****) is an Eoan asteroid in the outer region of the asteroid belt, approximately 5 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 19 July 2001, by astronomers of the Near-Earth Asteroid Tracking program at Palomar Observatory in California, United States. The asteroid was named for American astronaut and mission payload commander Mike Anderson, who died in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster.

Orbit and classification

Mikeanderson is a member the Eos family (606), the largest asteroid family in the outer asteroid belt consisting of nearly 10,000 asteroids. It orbits the Sun in the outer main-belt at a distance of 2.7–3.3 AU once every 5 years and 3 months (1,903 days; semi-major axis of 3.01 AU). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.11 and an inclination of 10° with respect to the ecliptic.

The body's observation arc begins with a precovery taken at Palomar Observatory in October 1960, more than 40 years prior to its official discovery observation.

Physical characteristics

The asteroid's spectral type is unknown. Typically, members of the Eos family are K-type asteroids. Mikeanderson's measured albedo also agrees with this spectral classification (see below).

Rotation period

As of 2017, no rotational lightcurve of Mikeanderson has been obtained from photometric observations. The asteroid's rotation period, poles and shape remain unknown.

Diameter and albedo

According to the survey carried out by the NEOWISE mission of NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, Mikeanderson measures 4.969 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo of 0.149.

Naming

This minor planet was named after Michael P. Anderson (1959–2003), an American astronaut and payload commander of the Columbia Space Shuttle who was killed in the STS-107 reentry disaster on 1 February 2003. The approved naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 6 August 2003 (M.P.C. 49283).

The following asteroids were named in memory of the other six members of STS-107: 51823 Rickhusband, 51825 Davidbrown, 51826 Kalpanachawla, 51827 Laurelclark, 51828 Ilanramon and 51829 Williemccool.

References

Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB), query form (info )
Dictionary of Minor Planet Names, Google books
Asteroids and comets rotation curves, CdR – Observatoire de Genève, Raoul Behrend
Discovery Circumstances: Numbered Minor Planets (50001)-(55000) – Minor Planet Center

Info: Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

eos-asteroids discoveries-by-neat named-minor-planets astronomical-objects-discovered-in-2001

Want to explore this topic further?

Ask Mako anything about 51824 Mikeanderson — get instant answers, deeper analysis, and related topics.

Research with Mako

Free with your Surf account

Content sourced from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This content may have been generated or modified by AI. CloudSurf Software LLC is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of AI-generated content. Always verify important information from primary sources.

Report