2026 Cottrell
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| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Indiana University (Indiana Asteroid Program) |
| Discovery site | Goethe Link Obs. |
| Discovery date | 30 March 1955 |
| Designations | |
| (2026) Cottrell | |
Named after | Frederick Gardner Cottrell (American chemist)[2] |
| 1955 FF · 1951 EL1 1972 TE1 | |
| main-belt · (inner)[3] | |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 66.15 yr (24,163 days) |
| Aphelion | 2.7290 AU |
| Perihelion | 2.1638 AU |
| 2.4464 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.1155 |
| 3.83 yr (1,398 days) | |
| 135.21° | |
| 0° 15m 27.36s / day | |
| Inclination | 2.4510° |
| 311.10° | |
| 211.67° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 7.46 km (calculated)[3] 11.43±2.35 km[4] 13.19±0.55 km[5] 13.97±7.02 km[6] 14.279±0.071 km[7][8] |
| 4.499±0.0014 h[9] 4.499±0.0010 h[9] 4.4994±0.0004 h[10] | |
| 0.050±0.005[7][8] 0.063±0.053[6] 0.07±0.10[4] 0.088±0.009[5] 0.20 (assumed)[3] | |
| S[3] | |
| 12.8[5][7] · 12.90[6] · 12.964±0.002 (R)[9] · 13.0[1][3] · 13.15±0.90[11] · 13.18[4] | |
2026 Cottrell, provisional designation 1955 FF, is a dark asteroid from the inner regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 12 kilometers in diameter.
The asteroid was discovered on 30 March 1955, by IU's Indiana Asteroid Program at Goethe Link Observatory near Brooklyn, Indiana, United States.[12] It was named after American chemist Frederick Gardner Cottrell.[2]
Cottrell orbits the Sun in the inner main-belt at a distance of 2.2–2.7 AU once every 3 years and 10 months (1,398 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.12 and an inclination of 2° with respect to the ecliptic.[1]
In March 1951, the asteroid was identified as 1951 EL1 at Nice Observatory and two days later at McDonald Observatory, extending the body's observation arc by four years prior to its official discovery observation at Goethe Link.[12]
