Discovery | |
---|---|
Discovered by | James Craig Watson |
Discovery site | Ann Arbor, Michigan |
Discovery date | 24 August 1867 |
Designations | |
(93) Minerva | |
Pronunciation | /mɪˈnɜːrvə/ [1] |
Named after | Minerva |
1949 QN2, A902 DA | |
Main belt | |
Adjectives | Minervian, Minervean /mɪˈnɜːrviən/ |
Orbital characteristics [2] | |
Epoch 31 July 2016 ( JD 2457600.5) | |
Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
Observation arc | 146.14 yr (53379 d) |
Aphelion | 3.1429 AU (470.17 Gm) |
Perihelion | 2.3711 AU (354.71 Gm) |
2.7570 AU (412.44 Gm) | |
Eccentricity | 0.13998 |
4.58 yr (1672.0 d) | |
Average
orbital speed | ~17.86 km/s |
262.022 ° | |
0° 12m 55.116s / day | |
Inclination | 8.56143° |
4.06265° | |
274.543° | |
Physical characteristics | |
154.155±1.298
km (
IRAS)
[2] 156 km [3] | |
Mass | 3.8×1018 kg (calculated) [a] |
Mean
density | 1.9 g/cm3 [3] |
Equatorial
surface gravity | 4.139 cm/s2 (0.004221 g) [4] |
Equatorial
escape velocity | 8.035 cm/s [4] |
5.982 h (0.2493 d) [2] | |
0.056±0.008 [2] | |
C
[2] G? [3] | |
7.91 [2] | |
Minerva ( minor planet designation: 93 Minerva) is a large trinary main-belt asteroid. It is a C-type asteroid, meaning that it has a dark surface and possibly a primitive carbonaceous composition. It was discovered by J. C. Watson on 24 August 1867, and named after Minerva, the Roman equivalent of Athena, goddess of wisdom. An occultation of a star by Minerva was observed in France, Spain and the United States on 22 November 1982. An occultation diameter of ~170 km was measured from the observations. Since then two more occultations have been observed, which give an estimated mean diameter of ~150 km. [5] [6]
On 16 August 2009, at 13:36 UT, the Keck Observatory's adaptive optics system revealed that the asteroid 93 Minerva possesses 2 small moons. [7] They are 4 and 3 km in diameter and the projected separations from Minerva correspond to 630 km (8.8 x Rprimary) and 380 km (5.2 x Rprimary) respectively. [7] They have been named Aegis [8] ( /ˈiːdʒɪs/) [9] and Gorgoneion [8] ( /ˌɡɔːrɡəˈnaɪən/). [10]
Discovery | |
---|---|
Discovered by | James Craig Watson |
Discovery site | Ann Arbor, Michigan |
Discovery date | 24 August 1867 |
Designations | |
(93) Minerva | |
Pronunciation | /mɪˈnɜːrvə/ [1] |
Named after | Minerva |
1949 QN2, A902 DA | |
Main belt | |
Adjectives | Minervian, Minervean /mɪˈnɜːrviən/ |
Orbital characteristics [2] | |
Epoch 31 July 2016 ( JD 2457600.5) | |
Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
Observation arc | 146.14 yr (53379 d) |
Aphelion | 3.1429 AU (470.17 Gm) |
Perihelion | 2.3711 AU (354.71 Gm) |
2.7570 AU (412.44 Gm) | |
Eccentricity | 0.13998 |
4.58 yr (1672.0 d) | |
Average
orbital speed | ~17.86 km/s |
262.022 ° | |
0° 12m 55.116s / day | |
Inclination | 8.56143° |
4.06265° | |
274.543° | |
Physical characteristics | |
154.155±1.298
km (
IRAS)
[2] 156 km [3] | |
Mass | 3.8×1018 kg (calculated) [a] |
Mean
density | 1.9 g/cm3 [3] |
Equatorial
surface gravity | 4.139 cm/s2 (0.004221 g) [4] |
Equatorial
escape velocity | 8.035 cm/s [4] |
5.982 h (0.2493 d) [2] | |
0.056±0.008 [2] | |
C
[2] G? [3] | |
7.91 [2] | |
Minerva ( minor planet designation: 93 Minerva) is a large trinary main-belt asteroid. It is a C-type asteroid, meaning that it has a dark surface and possibly a primitive carbonaceous composition. It was discovered by J. C. Watson on 24 August 1867, and named after Minerva, the Roman equivalent of Athena, goddess of wisdom. An occultation of a star by Minerva was observed in France, Spain and the United States on 22 November 1982. An occultation diameter of ~170 km was measured from the observations. Since then two more occultations have been observed, which give an estimated mean diameter of ~150 km. [5] [6]
On 16 August 2009, at 13:36 UT, the Keck Observatory's adaptive optics system revealed that the asteroid 93 Minerva possesses 2 small moons. [7] They are 4 and 3 km in diameter and the projected separations from Minerva correspond to 630 km (8.8 x Rprimary) and 380 km (5.2 x Rprimary) respectively. [7] They have been named Aegis [8] ( /ˈiːdʒɪs/) [9] and Gorgoneion [8] ( /ˌɡɔːrɡəˈnaɪən/). [10]