5380 Sprigg
Asteroid
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5380 Sprigg, provisional designation 1991 JT, is a background asteroid from the middle regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 7 kilometers (4.3 miles) in diameter. It was discovered on 7 May 1991, by Australian astronomer Robert McNaught at Siding Spring Observatory in New South Wales, Australia.[8] It was named after Australian geologist Reg Sprigg.[2]
| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | R. H. McNaught |
| Discovery site | Siding Spring Obs. |
| Discovery date | 7 May 1991 |
| Designations | |
| (5380) Sprigg | |
Named after | Reg Sprigg (Australian geologist)[2] |
| 1991 JT · 1983 JN 1983 LA1 | |
| main-belt · (middle)[3] background | |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 35.92 yr (13,118 days) |
| Aphelion | 3.1229 AU |
| Perihelion | 2.0357 AU |
| 2.5793 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.2108 |
| 4.14 yr (1,513 days) | |
| 102.71° | |
| 0° 14m 16.44s / day | |
| Inclination | 9.3019° |
| 242.31° | |
| 358.90° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 6.606±0.290 km[4][5] 12.75 km (calculated)[3] |
| 3.219±0.002 h[6] | |
| 0.057 (assumed)[3] 0.280±0.025[4][5] | |
| X[7] · C[3] | |
| 12.9[4] · 13.03±0.32[7] · 13.2[1][3] | |
Orbit and classification
Sprigg is a non-family asteroid from the main belt's background population. It orbits the Sun in the central asteroid belt at a distance of 2.0–3.1 AU once every 4 years and 2 months (1,513 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.21 and an inclination of 9° with respect to the ecliptic.[1] A first precovery was taken at Palomar Observatory in 1980, extending the body's observation arc by 11 years prior to its official discovery observation at Siding Spring.[8]
Naming
This minor planet was named after Reg Sprigg (1919–1994), Australian exploration geologist, oceanographer, biologist, author and conservationist. In 1946, he discovered the pre-Cambrian Ediacara biota, an assemblage of some of the most ancient animal fossils known. He is also the founder of the Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary which also hosts a small observatory. The naming was proposed by astronomer Duncan Steel.[2] Naming citation was prepared by the Sprigg family and published on 11 April 1998 (M.P.C. 31609).[9]
Physical characteristics
Sprigg has been classified as an X-type asteroid by Pan-STARRS photometric survey.[7]
Rotation period
A rotational lightcurve of Sprigg was obtained from photometric observations by astronomer Maurice Clark at Texas Tech University in October 2013. Lightcurve analysis gave a rotation period of 3.219 hours with a brightness amplitude of 0.68 magnitude, indicating that the body has a non-spheroidal shape (U=3-).[6]
Diameter and albedo
According to the survey carried out by NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer with its subsequent NEOWISE mission, Sprigg measures 6.606 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo of 0.280,[4][5] while the Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes a standard albedo for carbonaceous asteroids of 0.057 and calculates a larger diameter of 12.75 kilometers with an absolute magnitude of 13.2.[3]
