(175706) 1996 FG3
(175706) 1996 FG3 is a near-Earth binary asteroid[1] in the Apollo group. It was discovered by Robert H. McNaught at the Siding Spring Observatory in Coonabarabran, New South Wales, Australia, on March 24, 1996. It is listed as a potentially hazardous object.[2] A moon was discovered orbiting the asteroid in 1998. The moon is 0.49 ± 0.08 km in diameter, and orbits the asteroid every 16 hours, 9 minutes, and 3 seconds.[1]
Prior to late 2012, (175706) 1996 FG3 was the preliminary baseline target of the European Space Agency's MarcoPolo-R mission, which was selected for the assessment study phase of ESA's M3 mission.[3]
See also
References
- ^ a b Johnston, Robert. "(175706) 1996 FG3". johnstonsarchive.net. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
- ^ JPL Small-Body Database Browser
- ^ New observations of asteroid (175706) 1996 FG3, primary target of the ESA Marco Polo-R mission
External links
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