Discovery [1] | |
---|---|
Discovered by | E. F. Helin |
Discovery site | Palomar Obs. |
Discovery date | 6 September 1989 |
Designations | |
(7336) Saunders | |
Named after | R. Stephen Saunders ( JPL scientist) [2] |
1989 RS1 | |
NEO · Amor [1] [3] | |
Orbital characteristics [1] | |
Epoch 4 September 2017 ( JD 2458000.5) | |
Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
Observation arc | 34.63 yr (12,647 days) |
Aphelion | 3.4148 AU |
Perihelion | 1.1956 AU |
2.3052 AU | |
Eccentricity | 0.4813 |
3.50 yr (1,278 days) | |
353.72 ° | |
0° 16m 53.76s / day | |
Inclination | 7.1958° |
174.49° | |
181.51° | |
Earth MOID | 0.1908 AU · 74.3 LD |
Physical characteristics | |
Dimensions | 0.467 km (derived) [4] |
6
h
[5] 6.423±0.004 h [a] | |
0.20 (assumed) [4] | |
SMASS = Sq [1] · S [4] | |
18.0 [5] · 18.45±0.2 (R) [a] · 18.8 [1] · 19.02±0.112 [4] [6] | |
7336 Saunders, provisional designation 1989 RS1, is a stony asteroid and near-Earth object of the Amor group, approximately 0.5 kilometers in diameter.
The asteroid was discovered on 6 September 1989, by American astronomer Eleanor Helin at Palomar Observatory in California, United States. [3] It was named for JPL-project scientist R. Stephen Saunders. [2]
Saunders orbits the Sun at a distance of 1.2–3.4 AU once every 3 years and 6 months (1,278 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.48 and an inclination of 7 ° with respect to the ecliptic. [1]
A first precovery was taken at the Australian Siding Spring Observatory in 1982, extending the body's observation arc by 7 years prior to its official discovery at Palomar. [3] It has a minimum orbital intersection distance with Earth of 0.1908 AU (28,500,000 km), which corresponds to 74.3 lunar distances. [4]
In the SMASS classification, Saunders is a Sq-type, which transitions from the common S-type to the Q-type asteroids. [1] The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes a standard albedo for stony asteroids of 0.20 and derives a diameter of 467 meters, based on an absolute magnitude of 19.02. [4]
In October 1989, the first photometric observations of Saunders were made with the ESO 1-metre telescope at La Silla in Chile. [5] It gave a rotation period of 6 hours with a brightness variation of 0.3 magnitude ( U=2). Another rotational lightcurve was obtained by Czech astronomer Petr Pravec at Ondřejov Observatory in August 2003, giving a period of 6.423±0.004 and an amplitude of 0.2 magnitude ( U=n.a.). [a]
This minor planet was named in honor of JPL-project scientist R. Stephen Saunders (born 1940), director of the RPIF and head scientist of the Solar System Exploration Office. He worked on the Mars Surveyor 2001/03 program and on the Magellan spacecraft, that visited and mapped Venus in 1990. [2] The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 26 July 2000 ( M.P.C. 41028). [7]
Discovery [1] | |
---|---|
Discovered by | E. F. Helin |
Discovery site | Palomar Obs. |
Discovery date | 6 September 1989 |
Designations | |
(7336) Saunders | |
Named after | R. Stephen Saunders ( JPL scientist) [2] |
1989 RS1 | |
NEO · Amor [1] [3] | |
Orbital characteristics [1] | |
Epoch 4 September 2017 ( JD 2458000.5) | |
Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
Observation arc | 34.63 yr (12,647 days) |
Aphelion | 3.4148 AU |
Perihelion | 1.1956 AU |
2.3052 AU | |
Eccentricity | 0.4813 |
3.50 yr (1,278 days) | |
353.72 ° | |
0° 16m 53.76s / day | |
Inclination | 7.1958° |
174.49° | |
181.51° | |
Earth MOID | 0.1908 AU · 74.3 LD |
Physical characteristics | |
Dimensions | 0.467 km (derived) [4] |
6
h
[5] 6.423±0.004 h [a] | |
0.20 (assumed) [4] | |
SMASS = Sq [1] · S [4] | |
18.0 [5] · 18.45±0.2 (R) [a] · 18.8 [1] · 19.02±0.112 [4] [6] | |
7336 Saunders, provisional designation 1989 RS1, is a stony asteroid and near-Earth object of the Amor group, approximately 0.5 kilometers in diameter.
The asteroid was discovered on 6 September 1989, by American astronomer Eleanor Helin at Palomar Observatory in California, United States. [3] It was named for JPL-project scientist R. Stephen Saunders. [2]
Saunders orbits the Sun at a distance of 1.2–3.4 AU once every 3 years and 6 months (1,278 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.48 and an inclination of 7 ° with respect to the ecliptic. [1]
A first precovery was taken at the Australian Siding Spring Observatory in 1982, extending the body's observation arc by 7 years prior to its official discovery at Palomar. [3] It has a minimum orbital intersection distance with Earth of 0.1908 AU (28,500,000 km), which corresponds to 74.3 lunar distances. [4]
In the SMASS classification, Saunders is a Sq-type, which transitions from the common S-type to the Q-type asteroids. [1] The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes a standard albedo for stony asteroids of 0.20 and derives a diameter of 467 meters, based on an absolute magnitude of 19.02. [4]
In October 1989, the first photometric observations of Saunders were made with the ESO 1-metre telescope at La Silla in Chile. [5] It gave a rotation period of 6 hours with a brightness variation of 0.3 magnitude ( U=2). Another rotational lightcurve was obtained by Czech astronomer Petr Pravec at Ondřejov Observatory in August 2003, giving a period of 6.423±0.004 and an amplitude of 0.2 magnitude ( U=n.a.). [a]
This minor planet was named in honor of JPL-project scientist R. Stephen Saunders (born 1940), director of the RPIF and head scientist of the Solar System Exploration Office. He worked on the Mars Surveyor 2001/03 program and on the Magellan spacecraft, that visited and mapped Venus in 1990. [2] The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 26 July 2000 ( M.P.C. 41028). [7]