Appenzella is a dark carbonaceous asteroid and a member of the Polanian subgroup of the Nysa family. On the Tholen taxonomic scheme, it belongs to the small group of 28 bodies known to have a F-type spectrum.[13]
It orbits the Sun in the inner main-belt at a distance of 2.0–2.9 AU once every 3 years and 10 months (1,402 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.18 and an inclination of 3° with respect to the ecliptic.[1] The first used[clarification needed] observation was made at the Finnish Turku Observatory in 1942, extending the asteroid's observation arc by 23 years prior to its discovery.[12]
Lightcurve
In November 2011, a rotational lightcurve of Appenzella was obtained by French astronomer René Roy at his Blauvac Observatory (627) in southeastern France. Lightcurve analysis gave a well-defined rotation period of 5.1839 hours with a brightness variation of 0.53 magnitude (U=3).[11] In 2016, remodeled photometric data from the Lowell database gave in a very similar period of 5.18335 hours.[10]
Diameter and albedo
Based on the surveys carried out by NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer and its subsequent NEOWISE mission, the asteroid measures between 19.0 and 21 kilometers in diameter and its surface has a low albedo between 0.03 and 0.04.[4][5][6][7][8][9] The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link agrees with the results obtained by the Infrared Astronomical Satellite, IRAS, which found an albedo of 0.034 and a mean diameter of 20.9 kilometers, with an absolute magnitude of 12.7.[1][3]
^Schmadel, Lutz D. "Appendix – Publication Dates of the MPCs". Dictionary of Minor Planet Names – Addendum to Fifth Edition (2006–2008). Springer Berlin Heidelberg. p. 221. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-01965-4. ISBN978-3-642-01964-7.