6377 Cagney
| Discovery [1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | A. Mrkos |
| Discovery site | Kleť Obs. |
| Discovery date | 25 June 1987 |
| Designations | |
| (6377) Cagney | |
Named after | James Cagney (actor)[2] |
| 1987 ML1 · 1953 LA 1991 GF2 | |
| main-belt · Eunomia [3] | |
| Orbital characteristics [1] | |
| Epoch 16 February 2017 (JD 2457800.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 64.45 yr (23,539 days) |
| Aphelion | 3.0380 AU |
| Perihelion | 2.2029 AU |
| 2.6204 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.1593 |
| 4.24 yr (1,549 days) | |
| 19.382° | |
| 0° 13m 56.64s / day | |
| Inclination | 15.444° |
| 125.32° | |
| 115.28° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 9.17 km (calculated)[3] |
| 4.171±0.003 h[4] | |
| 0.21 (assumed)[3] | |
| C [3][5] | |
| 12.5[3] · 12.6[1] · 12.79±0.59[5] | |
6377 Cagney, provisional designation 1987 ML1, is a carbonaceous Eunomia asteroid from the middle region of the asteroid belt, approximately 9 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 25 June 1987, by Czech astronomer Antonín Mrkos at South Bohemian Kleť Observatory in the Czech Republic.[6]
The C-type asteroid is a member of the Eunomia family, the most prominent family of otherwise stony asteroids in the intermediate main-belt. It orbits the Sun at a distance of 2.2–3.0 AU once every 4 years and 3 months (1,549 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.16 and an inclination of 15° with respect to the ecliptic.[1] The first precovery was taken at Palomar Observatory in 1951, extending the asteroid's observation arc by 36 years prior to its discovery.[6]
In February 2008, a photometric light-curve analysis by Slovak astronomer Adrián Galád at the Modra Observatory gave a rotation period of 4.171±0.003 hours with a brightness variation of 0.20 in magnitude (U=3).[4] The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes an albedo of 0.21 (which is typical for stony asteroids and contradicts its C-type classification) and calculates a diameter of 9.2 kilometers, based on an absolute magnitude of 12.5.[3] Alternatively, based NASA's generic magnitude-to-size conversion table, and assuming a rather typical albedo for carbonaceous asteroids of 0.05, the body's diameter would increase to 19 kilometers.[7]
The minor planet was named in memory of American actor and dancer James Cagney (1899–1986), remembered best for playing multifaceted tough guys in movies such as The Public Enemy (1931) and Angels with Dirty Faces (1938). In 1942, Cagney won the Oscar for his energetic portrayal of George M. Cohan in Yankee Doodle Dandy.[2] Naming citation was published on 20 June 1997 (M.P.C. 30098).[8]
References
- ^ a b c d "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 6377 Cagney (1987 ML1)" (2016-06-07 last obs.). Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 5 December 2016.
- ^ a b Schmadel, Lutz D. (2007). Dictionary of Minor Planet Names – (6377) Cagney. Springer Berlin Heidelberg. p. 528. ISBN 978-3-540-00238-3. Retrieved 1 March 2016.
- ^ a b c d e f "LCDB Data for (6377) Cagney". Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB). Retrieved 24 May 2016.
- ^ a b Galad, Adrian (April 2009). "Digest of Ten Lightcurves from Modra". The Minor Planet Bulletin. 36 (2): 42–44. Bibcode:2009MPBu...36...42G. ISSN 1052-8091. Retrieved 24 May 2016.
- ^ a b 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 24 May 2016.
- ^ a b "6377 Cagney (1987 ML1)". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 1 March 2016.
- ^ "Absolute Magnitude (H)". NASA/JPL. Retrieved 1 February 2016.
- ^ "MPC/MPO/MPS Archive". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 24 May 2016.
External links
- Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB), query form (info)
- Dictionary of Minor Planet Names, Google books
- Asteroids and comets rotation curves, CdR – Observatoire de Genève, Raoul Behrend
- Discovery Circumstances: Numbered Minor Planets (5001)-(10000) – Minor Planet Center
- 6377 Cagney at the JPL Small-Body Database
