3951 Zichichi
Main-belt asteroid
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
3951 Zichichi, provisional designation 1986 CK1, is a stony Florian asteroid and binary system from the inner regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 7 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 12 February 1986, by staff members at the San Vittore Observatory near Bologna, Italy, and named after physicist Antonino Zichichi.[2][7]
| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | San Vittore Obs. |
| Discovery site | San Vittore Obs. |
| Discovery date | 13 February 1986 |
| Designations | |
| (3951) Zichichi | |
Named after | Antonino Zichichi (Italian nuclear physicist)[2] |
| 1986 CK1 · 1938 UG 1976 JG9 · 1979 DR 1981 UJ12 · 1986 AU2 | |
| main-belt · Flora[3] | |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 40.56 yr (14,816 days) |
| Aphelion | 2.7469 AU |
| Perihelion | 1.9320 AU |
| 2.3394 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.1742 |
| 3.58 yr (1,307 days) | |
| 355.00° | |
| 0° 16m 31.44s / day | |
| Inclination | 5.4133° |
| 270.04° | |
| 151.72° | |
| Known satellites | 1[4][5] |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 6.720±0.213[6] |
| 3.39423±0.00007 h[5] | |
| 0.325±0.050[6] | |
| S[3] | |
| 12.8[1] | |
Orbit and classification
Zichichi is a S-type asteroid and member of the Flora family, one of the largest collisional populations of stony asteroids in the main-belt. It orbits the Sun in the inner main-belt at a distance of 1.9–2.7 AU once every 3 years and 7 months (1,307 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.17 and an inclination of 5° with respect to the ecliptic.[1]
Physical characteristics
A minor-planet moon was discovered orbiting at a distance of 16 km in 2006, but not announced until 2011.[4][5]
Naming
This minor planet was named after Italian nuclear physicist Antonino Zichichi.[2] The approved naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 20 May 1989 (M.P.C. 14634).[8]
