78816 Caripito
| Discovery [1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | J. Dellinger |
| Discovery site | Needville Obs. |
| Discovery date | 4 August 2003 |
| Designations | |
| MPC designation | 78816 Caripito |
Named after |
Caripito (Venezuelan town)[2] |
| 2003 PZ9 | |
| main-belt (outer) | |
| Orbital characteristics [1] | |
| Epoch 16 February 2017 (JD 2457800.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 62.53 yr (22,840 days) |
| Aphelion | 3.8477 AU |
| Perihelion | 2.4342 AU |
| 3.1409 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.2250 |
| 5.57 yr (2,033 days) | |
| 127.36° | |
| 0° 10m 37.56s / day | |
| Inclination | 5.6212° |
| 278.27° | |
| 86.468° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions |
5 km (calculated at 0.05)[3] 5.328±0.129 km[4] |
| 0.052±0.008[4] | |
| 15.4[1] | |
|
| |
78816 Caripito, provisional designation 2003 PZ9, is an asteroid from the outer region of the asteroid belt, approximately 5 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 4 August 2003, by American amateur astronomer and professor of geophysics, Joseph Dellinger, at the U.S. Needville Observatory, Texas.[5]
The asteroid orbits the Sun at a distance of 2.4–3.8 AU once every 5 years and 7 months (2,033 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.23 and an inclination of 6° with respect to the ecliptic.[1] The first precovery was taken at Palomar's Digitized Sky Survey in 1953, extending the asteroid's observation arc by 50 years prior to its discovery.[5]
As of 2016, the Caripito's composition and albedo, as well as its rotation period and shape remain unknown. According to the survey carried out by NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer with its subsequent NEOWISE mission, the asteroid measures 5.3 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo of 0.052.[4] This low albedo is typical for asteroids in the outer main-belt, which are mostly of a carbonaceous rather than of a silicaceous composition. Based on an absolute magnitude of 15.4, and assuming an albedo of 0.05, the asteroid's generic diameter measures between 2 and 5 kilometers.[3]
This minor planet is named for the Venezuelan town of Caripito in the northeastern Monagas State. It was the place where the parents of the discoverer, Thomas Baynes Dellinger (b. 1926) and María de la Garza Cantú (b. 1928), met in 1949. At the time, the town was a base camp for the country's rich Quiriquire oil field.[2] Naming citation was published on 18 September 2005 (M.P.C. 54829).[6]
References
- 1 2 3 4 "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 78816 Caripito (2003 PZ9)" (2016-03-19 last obs.). Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
- 1 2 Schmadel, Lutz D. (2006). Dictionary of Minor Planet Names – (78816) Caripito, Addendum to Fifth Edition: 2003–2005. Springer Berlin Heidelberg. p. 232. ISBN 978-3-540-34361-5. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
- 1 2 "Absolute Magnitude (H)". NASA/JPL. Retrieved 5 August 2016.
- 1 2 3 Masiero, Joseph R.; Mainzer, A. K.; Grav, T.; Bauer, J. M.; Cutri, R. M.; Dailey, J.; et al. (November 2011). "Main Belt Asteroids with WISE/NEOWISE. I. Preliminary Albedos and Diameters". The Astrophysical Journal. 741 (2): 20. arXiv:1109.4096
. Bibcode:2011ApJ...741...68M. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/741/2/68. Retrieved 2 December 2016. - 1 2 "78816 Caripito (2003 PZ9)". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
- ↑ "MPC/MPO/MPS Archive". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
External links
- 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 (75001)-(80000) – Minor Planet Center
- 78816 Caripito at the JPL Small-Body Database
