2024 McLaughlin, provisional designation 1952 UR, is an asteroid from the inner regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 8 kilometer in diameter. It was discovered 23 October 1952, by the Indiana Asteroid Program at Goethe Link Observatory near Brooklyn, Indiana, and named after American astronomer Dean Benjamin McLaughlin.[2][4]

2024 McLaughlin
Discovery [1]
Discovered byIndiana University
(Indiana Asteroid Program)
Discovery siteGoethe Link Obs.
Discovery date23 October 1952
Designations
(2024) McLaughlin
Named after
Dean B. McLaughlin
(American astronomer)[2]
1952 UR · 1938 WP
1982 BX4
main-belt · Vesta[citation needed]
Orbital characteristics[1]
Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Observation arc78.35 yr (28,619 days)
Aphelion2.6479 AU
Perihelion2.0019 AU
2.3249 AU
Eccentricity0.1389
3.54 yr (1,295 days)
126.79°
0° 16m 40.8s / day
Inclination7.3117°
69.231°
291.34°
Physical characteristics
Dimensions7.915±0.079[3]
0.173±0.020[3]
12.9[1]

Orbit and classification edit

McLaughlin orbits the Sun in the inner main-belt at a distance of 2.0–2.6 AU once every 3 years and 6 months (1,295 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.14 and an inclination of 7° with respect to the ecliptic.[1]

The asteroid was first identified as 1938 WP at the Finnish Turku Observatory in 1938, extending the body's observation arc by 14 years prior to its official discovery observation.[4]

Physical characteristics edit

According to the survey carried out by NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer with its subsequent NEOWISE mission, the asteroid measures 7.9 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo of 0.173.[3]

As of 2017, McLaughlin's composition, rotation period and shape remain unknown.[1][5]

Naming edit

This minor planet was named in memory of American astronomer and geologist Dean Benjamin McLaughlin (1901–1965).[2]

McLaughlin was an astronomical spectroscopist at Swarthmore College and the University of Michigan, and was the first to thoroughly measure stellar rotation, most notably the rotation of Algol. As a geologist he was one of the first to interpret the telescopically observable markings on Mars, which were later confirmed by direct observations from spacecraft (also see Albedo features). The lunar and Martian crater McLaughlin are also named in his honour.[2] The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 6 June 1982 (M.P.C. 6955).[6]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 2024 McLaughlin (1952 UR)" (2017-03-27 last obs.). Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 10 June 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d Schmadel, Lutz D. (2007). "(2024) McLaughlin". Dictionary of Minor Planet Names – (2024) McLaughlin. Springer Berlin Heidelberg. p. 164. doi:10.1007/978-3-540-29925-7_2025. ISBN 978-3-540-00238-3.
  3. ^ a b c Masiero, Joseph R.; Grav, T.; Mainzer, A. K.; Nugent, C. R.; Bauer, J. M.; Stevenson, R.; et al. (August 2014). "Main-belt Asteroids with WISE/NEOWISE: Near-infrared Albedos". The Astrophysical Journal. 791 (2): 11. arXiv:1406.6645. Bibcode:2014ApJ...791..121M. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/791/2/121. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  4. ^ a b "2024 McLaughlin (1952 UR)". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  5. ^ "LCDB Data for (2024) McLaughlin". Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB). Retrieved 10 June 2017.
  6. ^ "MPC/MPO/MPS Archive". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 8 December 2016.

External links edit