Discovery [1] | |
---|---|
Discovered by |
Indiana University ( Indiana Asteroid Program) |
Discovery site | Goethe Link Obs. |
Discovery date | 4 October 1961 |
Designations | |
(1994) Shane | |
Named after |
C. Donald Shane
[2] (American astronomer) |
1961 TE · 1939 RN | |
main-belt · (
middle)
[3] Adeona [4] | |
Orbital characteristics [1] | |
Epoch 4 September 2017 ( JD 2458000.5) | |
Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
Observation arc | 77.64 yr (28,358 days) |
Aphelion | 3.2332 AU |
Perihelion | 2.1282 AU |
2.6807 AU | |
Eccentricity | 0.2061 |
4.39 yr (1,603 days) | |
298.87 ° | |
0° 13m 28.56s / day | |
Inclination | 10.217° |
244.73° | |
89.669° | |
Physical characteristics | |
Dimensions | 17.91±0.93 km
[5] 25.00 km (derived) [3] 25.15±0.6 km ( IRAS:19) [6] |
8
h
[7] 8.220±0.001 h [8] | |
0.0340 (derived)
[3] 0.0640±0.003 (IRAS:19) [6] 0.129±0.014 [5] | |
S [3] | |
11.6 [5] [6] · 11.81±0.86 [9] · 12.3 [1] [3] | |
1994 Shane, provisional designation 1961 TE, is a dark Adeonian asteroid from the central region of the asteroid belt, approximately 25 kilometers in diameter.
It was discovered on 4 October 1961, by astronomers of the Indiana Asteroid Program conducted at the Goethe Link Observatory near Brooklyn, Indiana, United States. [10] It was later named after American astronomer C. Donald Shane. [2]
Shane is a member of the Adeona family ( 505), a large family of carbonaceous asteroids. [4]
The asteroid orbits the Sun in the intermediate main belt at a distance of 2.1–3.2 AU once every 4 years and 5 months (1,603 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.21 and an inclination of 10 ° with respect to the ecliptic. [1] It was first identified as 1939 RN at Simeiz Observatory in 1939, extending Shane's observation arc by 22 years prior to its official discovery observation at Goethe. [10]
In October 2009, a rotational lightcurve of Shane was obtained from photometric observations at the Via Capote Observatory ( G69) in California. It gave a well-defined rotation period of 8.22 hours with a brightness variation of 0.26 magnitude ( U=3), [8] superseding a previously obtained period of 8 hours from 1996 ( U=n.a.). [7]
According to observations made by the Infrared Astronomical Satellite IRAS, Shane has an albedo of 0.06, [6] while the survey carried out by the Japanese Akari satellite rendered a higher albedo of 0.13 with a corresponding diameter of 18 kilometers. [5] The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link derives an even lower albedo of 0.04, yet does not classify it as a carbonaceous but rather as a S-type asteroid, which typically have much higher albedos due to their stony surface composition. [3]
This minor planet was named after American astronomer Charles Donald Shane (1895–1983), director of Lick Observatory, second president of AURA, and instrumental for the establishment of the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile.
Shane played a major role in the planning and construction of the first telescopes and buildings on Kitt Peak National Observatory as well. [2] The 3-meter C. Donald Shane telescope, located at Lick Observatory, was also named after him. The approved naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 1 March 1981 ( M.P.C. 5848). [11]