1514 Ricouxa, provisional designation 1906 UR, is a stony Florian asteroid from the inner regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 7.5 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 22 August 1906, by German astronomer Max Wolf at Heidelberg Observatory in southern Germany.[12] The origin of the asteroid's name is unknown.[2]

1514 Ricouxa
Shape model of Ricouxa from its lightcurve
Discovery[1]
Discovered byM. F. Wolf
Discovery siteHeidelberg Obs.
Discovery date22 August 1906
Designations
(1514) Ricouxa
Named after
unknown
(named by A. Patry)[2]
1906 UR · 1936 ME
1939 HC · 1940 XA
1970 XA · A916 OC
main-belt · Flora[3]
Orbital characteristics[1]
Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Observation arc110.06 yr (40,198 days)
Aphelion2.6876 AU
Perihelion1.7937 AU
2.2407 AU
Eccentricity0.1995
3.35 yr (1,225 days)
41.914°
0° 17m 38.04s / day
Inclination4.5349°
145.85°
179.38°
Physical characteristics
Dimensions6.66±0.27 km[4]
7.07 km (derived)[3]
7.784±0.062 km[5]
8.129±0.021 km[6]
10.033±0.002 h[7]
10.42466 h[8]
10.42468±0.00005 h[9]
10.438 h[10]
0.1821±0.0397[6]
0.228±0.039[5]
0.24 (assumed)[3]
0.363±0.046[4]
S[3]
12.60[4] · 12.79±0.17[11] · 12.8[1] · 12.92[3][6][10]

Classification and orbit

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Ricouxa is a S-type asteroid and member of the Flora family, one of the largest collisional populations of stony asteroids in the entire main-belt. It orbits the Sun at a distance of 1.8–2.7 AU once every 3 years and 4 months (1,225 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.20 and an inclination of 5° with respect to the ecliptic.[1] Ricouxa's observation arc begins with its official discovery observation in 1906, as no precoveries were taken, and no prior identifications were made.[12]

Physical characteristics

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Rotation and poles

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In the 1990s, Italian astronomer Maria A. Barucci obtained a rotational lightcurve of Ricouxa, using the ESO 1-metre telescope at La Silla Observatory in Chile. Lightcurve analysis gave a well-defined rotation period of 10.438 hours with a brightness variation of 0.62 magnitude (U=3).[10]

Photometric observations by French amateur astronomer Pierre Antonini in April 2006, gave a similar period of 10.033 hours and an identical amplitude of 0.62 magnitude (U=2+).[7] Additional periods were derived on modeled light-curves from various data sources. They gave a period of 10.42466 and 10.42468 hours, as well as a spin axis of (0°, 71.0°) and (251.0°, 75.0°) in ecliptic coordinates, respectively.[8][9]

Diameter and albedo

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According to the survey carried out by NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer with its subsequent NEOWISE mission, Ricouxa measures 7.78 kilometers in diameter, and its surface has an albedo of 0.228 (revised albedo-fits per 2014),[5] while the Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes an albedo of 0.24 – taken from 8 Flora, the family's principal body and namesake – and derives a diameter of 7.07 kilometers based on an absolute magnitude of 12.92.[3]

Naming

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This minor planet was named by French astronomer André Patry (1902–1960), after whom the asteroid 1601 Patry is named. However, any reference to a person or occurrence for the name "Ricouxa" remains unknown.[2] The asteroid's name was also published in The Names of the Minor Planets by Paul Herget in 1955 (H 135).[2]

Unknown meaning

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Among the many thousands of named minor planets, Ricouxa is one of 120 asteroids, for which no official naming citation has been published. All of these low-numbered asteroids have numbers between 164 Eva and 1514 Ricouxa and were discovered between 1876 and the 1930s, predominantly by astronomers Auguste Charlois, Johann Palisa, Max Wolf and Karl Reinmuth.[13]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 1514 Ricouxa (1906 UR)" (2016-09-11 last obs.). Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d Schmadel, Lutz D. (2007). "(1514) Ricouxa". Dictionary of Minor Planet Names – (1514) Ricouxa. Springer Berlin Heidelberg. p. 120. doi:10.1007/978-3-540-29925-7_1515. ISBN 978-3-540-00238-3.
  3. ^ a b c d e f "LCDB Data for (1514) Ricouxa". Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB). Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  4. ^ a b c Masiero, Joseph R.; Mainzer, A. K.; Grav, T.; Bauer, J. M.; Cutri, R. M.; Nugent, C.; et al. (November 2012). "Preliminary Analysis of WISE/NEOWISE 3-Band Cryogenic and Post-cryogenic Observations of Main Belt Asteroids". The Astrophysical Journal Letters. 759 (1): 5. arXiv:1209.5794. Bibcode:2012ApJ...759L...8M. doi:10.1088/2041-8205/759/1/L8. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  5. ^ a b c Masiero, Joseph R.; Grav, T.; Mainzer, A. K.; Nugent, C. R.; Bauer, J. M.; Stevenson, R.; et al. (August 2014). "Main-belt Asteroids with WISE/NEOWISE: Near-infrared Albedos". The Astrophysical Journal. 791 (2): 11. arXiv:1406.6645. Bibcode:2014ApJ...791..121M. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/791/2/121. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  6. ^ a b c 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. arXiv:1109.6407. Bibcode:2011ApJ...741...90M. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/741/2/90.
  7. ^ a b Behrend, Raoul. "Asteroids and comets rotation curves – (1514) Ricouxa". Geneva Observatory. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  8. ^ a b Durech, J.; Kaasalainen, M.; Warner, B. D.; Fauerbach, M.; Marks, S. A.; Fauvaud, S.; et al. (January 2009). "Asteroid models from combined sparse and dense photometric data". Astronomy and Astrophysics. 493 (1): 291–297. Bibcode:2009A&A...493..291D. doi:10.1051/0004-6361:200810393. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  9. ^ a b Hanus, J.; Durech, J.; Broz, M.; Warner, B. D.; Pilcher, F.; Stephens, R.; et al. (June 2011). "A study of asteroid pole-latitude distribution based on an extended set of shape models derived by the lightcurve inversion method". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 530: 16. arXiv:1104.4114. Bibcode:2011A&A...530A.134H. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/201116738. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  10. ^ a b c Barucci, M. A.; di Martino, M.; Dotto, E.; Fulchignoni, M.; Rotundi, A.; Burchi, R. (June 1994). "Rotational properties of small asteroids: Photoelectric observations of 16 asteroids". Icarus. 109 (2): 267–273. Bibcode:1994Icar..109..267B. doi:10.1006/icar.1994.1092. ISSN 0019-1035. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  11. ^ Veres, Peter; Jedicke, Robert; Fitzsimmons, Alan; Denneau, Larry; Granvik, Mikael; Bolin, Bryce; et al. (November 2015). "Absolute magnitudes and slope parameters for 250,000 asteroids observed by Pan-STARRS PS1 - Preliminary results". Icarus. 261: 34–47. arXiv:1506.00762. Bibcode:2015Icar..261...34V. doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2015.08.007. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  12. ^ a b "1514 Ricouxa (1906 UR)". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  13. ^ Schmadel, Lutz D. (2007). "Appendix 11 – Minor Planet Names with Unknown Meaning". Dictionary of Minor Planet Names – Fifth Revised and Enlarged revision. Springer Berlin Heidelberg. pp. 927–929. ISBN 978-3-540-00238-3.
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