Discovery [1] | |
---|---|
Discovered by | Y. Väisälä |
Discovery site | Turku Obs. |
Discovery date | 6 February 1938 |
Designations | |
(1462) Zamenhof | |
Named after |
L. L. Zamenhof
[2] (creator of Esperanto) |
1938 CA · 1963 TS 1964 VF2 · 1969 TU5 | |
main-belt · (
outer) Themis [3] [4] | |
Orbital characteristics [1] | |
Epoch 4 September 2017 ( JD 2458000.5) | |
Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
Observation arc | 53.72 yr (19,623 days) |
Aphelion | 3.4958 AU |
Perihelion | 2.8032 AU |
3.1495 AU | |
Eccentricity | 0.1100 |
5.59 yr (2,042 days) | |
7.0433 ° | |
0° 10m 34.68s / day | |
Inclination | 0.9657° |
24.810° | |
187.54° | |
Physical characteristics | |
Dimensions | 25.62 km (derived)
[3] 25.91±0.55 km [5] 26.57±0.52 km [6] 27.366±0.166 km [7] 27.645±0.395 km [8] |
10.2±0.6
h
[9] 10.4±0.1 h [10] | |
0.087±0.015
[5] 0.0891 (derived) [3] 0.1108±0.0319 [8] 0.121±0.005 [6] | |
C (assumed) [3] | |
10.80 [6] [8] · 11.20 [1] [3] [5] · 11.31±0.32 [11] | |
1462 Zamenhof, provisional designation 1938 CA, is a carbonaceous Themistian asteroid from the outer regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 27 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 6 February 1938, by Finnish astronomer Yrjö Väisälä at the Iso-Heikkilä Observatory in Finland. [12] The asteroid was named after L. L. Zamenhof, the creator of Esperanto. [2] It is a recognized Zamenhof-Esperanto object.
Zamenhof is a Themistian asteroid that belongs to the Themis family ( 602), [4] a very large family of carbonaceous asteroids, named after 24 Themis. [13]: 23 It orbits the Sun in the outer main-belt at a distance of 2.8–3.5 AU once every 5 years and 7 months (2,042 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.11 and an inclination of 1 ° with respect to the ecliptic. [1] The body's observation arc begins at the discovering observatory, one month prior to its official discovery observation. [12]
The Lightcurve Data Base assumes Zamenhof to be a common, carbonaceous C-type asteroid, [3] in agreement with the overall spectral type of the Themis family. [13]: 23
Two rotational lightcurves of Zamenhof were obtained from photometric observations in 2006 and 2011. Lightcurve analysis gave a rotation period of 10.2 and 10.4 hours with a brightness amplitude of 0.15 and 0.30 magnitude, respectively ( U=2/2). [9] [10]
According to the surveys carried out by the Japanese Akari satellite and the NEOWISE mission of NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, Zamenhof measures between 25.91 and 27.645 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo between 0.087 and 0.121. [5] [6] [7] [8]
The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link derives an albedo of 0.0891 and a diameter of 25.62 kilometers based on an absolute magnitude of 11.2. [3]
This minor planet was named after L. L. Zamenhof (1859–1917), a Polish-Jewish ophthalmologist and creator of Esperanto, a constructed international language. [2] This asteroid and 1421 Esperanto are considered to be the most remote Zamenhof-Esperanto objects (a monument or a place celebrating Zamenhof). The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center in January 1956 ( M.P.C. 1350). [14]