Aethusa is a background asteroid with no associated asteroid family. It orbits the Sun in the central main belt at a distance of 2.1–3.0 AU once every 4 years and 1 month (1,481 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.18 and an inclination of 10° with respect to the ecliptic.[1] The observation arc begins at Heidelberg/Simeiz Observatory two nights after the asteroid's official discovery observation.[14]
Physical characteristics
Aethusa is an assumed stony S-type asteroid, the most common type in the inner part of the central asteroid belt.
Rotation period
In November 2004, a rotational lightcurve of Aethusa was obtained from photometric observations by French amateur astronomer René Roy at Blauvac Observatory (627). Lightcurve analysis gave a rotation period of 12.916 hours with a brightness variation of 0.12 magnitude (U=2), while in March 2006, astronomer Brian Warner at his Palmer Divide observatory in Colorado, United States, obtained a shorter period of 8.621 hours and an amplitude of 0.18 magnitude (U=2).[11][12][a]
The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link derives a high albedo of 0.2952 and a diameter of 18.56 kilometers based on an absolute magnitude of 10.6.[5]
Naming
This minor planet was named after the genus "Aethusa" in the carrot family, of which the plant Aethusa cynapium – commonly known as fool's parsley, fool's cicely, or poison parsley – is the only member. The official naming citation was mentioned in The Names of the Minor Planets by Paul Herget in 1955 (H 101).[3]
^ abcdUsui, Fumihiko; Kuroda, Daisuke; Müller, Thomas G.; Hasegawa, Sunao; Ishiguro, Masateru; Ootsubo, Takafumi; et al. (October 2011). "Asteroid Catalog Using Akari: AKARI/IRC Mid-Infrared Asteroid Survey". Publications of the Astronomical Society of Japan. 63 (5): 1117–1138. Bibcode:2011PASJ...63.1117U. doi:10.1093/pasj/63.5.1117. (online, AcuA catalog p. 153)