2629 Rudra, provisional designation 1980 RB1, is a sizable Mars-crossing asteroid and slow rotator inside the asteroid belt, approximately 5.3 kilometers (3.3 miles) in diameter. It was discovered on 13 September 1980, by American astronomer Charles Kowal at the Palomar Observatory in California.[1] The dark B-type asteroid has a long rotation period 123 hours and likely an elongated shape.[3] It was named after Rudra from Hindu mythology.[1]

2629 Rudra
Discovery [1]
Discovered byC. Kowal
Discovery sitePalomar Obs.
Discovery date13 September 1980
Designations
(2629) Rudra
Named after
Rudra[1]
(Hindu mythology)
1980 RB1 · 1959 EH
Mars-crosser[1][2][3]
Orbital characteristics[2][4]
Epoch 23 March 2018 (JD 2458200.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Observation arc64.05 yr (23,396 d)
Aphelion2.1390 AU
Perihelion1.3417 AU
1.7404 AU
Eccentricity0.2290
2.30 yr (839 d)
186.56°
0° 25m 45.48s / day
Inclination23.440°
343.46°
280.67°
Physical characteristics
5.25±0.53 km[5]
6.69±0.49 km[6]
123.171±0.4738 h[7]
0.064[5][6]
SMASS = B[2][8]
14.50[6]
15.00[2][9][10][11][5]

Orbit and classification

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Rudra is a Mars-crossing asteroid, a dynamically unstable group between the main belt and the near-Earth populations, crossing the orbit of Mars at 1.66 AU. It orbits the Sun at a distance of 1.3–2.1 AU once every 2 years and 4 months (839 days; semi-major axis of 1.74 AU). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.23 and an inclination of 23° with respect to the ecliptic.[2] The body's observation arc begins with its first observation in January 1954, more than 26 years prior to its official discovery observation. The precovery was taken at Palomar Observatory and published by the Digitized Sky Survey.[1] On 15 April 2023 and on 23 July 2179, the asteroid will pass about 0.08 AU (12,000,000 km; 7,400,000 mi) from Mars.[2]

Naming

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This minor planet was named after Rudra from Hindu mythology. Rudra is the destroyer aspect of Shiva, and both destroyer and regenerator of all things in the Universe.[1] The asteroid's name was suggested by Frederick Pilcher and published by the Minor Planet Center on 1 June 1996 (M.P.C. 27329).[12]

Physical characteristics

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In the SMASS classification, Rudra is an uncommon, carbonaceous B-type asteroid.[2]

Rotation period

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In September 2010, a rotational lightcurve of Rudra was obtained from photometric observations by astronomers at the Palomar Transient Factory in California. Lightcurve analysis gave a rotation period of 123.171±0.4738 hours with a brightness variation of 0.58 magnitude (U=2).[7] Observations by the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) found a higher brightness amplitude of 0.87 and 0.95, respectively, which indicates that the body has a non-spherical, elongated shape.[3]

Diameter and albedo

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According to the surveys carried out by the NEOWISE mission of NASA's WISE telescope and the Japanese Akari satellite, Rudra measures between 4.73 and 6.69 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo between 0.064 and 0.07,[6][9][10][11][13][14] with a recently published diameter of 5.25±0.53 kilometers and an albedo of 0.064.[5][a][b]

The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes a standard albedo for a stony asteroid of 0.20 and consequently calculates a smaller diameter of 2.19 kilometers based on an absolute magnitude of 15.67.[3]

Notes

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  1. ^ Various published diameters: Nugent (2016): 4.73±1.31 km;[13] Nugent (2015) and Mainzer (2016): 4.88±1.22 km;[9][10] Ali-Lagoa (2013/2016): 5±1 km and 5.1±0.5 km;[11][14] Ali-Lagoa (2017): 5.25±0.53 km;[5] AKARI satellite (2011): 6.69±0.49 km.[6] Summary figures at the LCDB and the JPL-database.
  2. ^ Various published albedos: AKARI satellite (2011) and Ali-Lagoa (2017): 0.064; Mainzer (2016): 0.066; Nugent (2015): 0.066±0.027; Ali-Lagoa (2013/2016) and Nugent (2015): 0.07. Summary figures for (2629) Rudra at the LCDB and the JPL-database.

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g "2629 Rudra (1980 RB1)". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 24 September 2018.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 2629 Rudra (1980 RB1)" (2018-01-25 last obs.). Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 24 September 2018.
  3. ^ a b c d "LCDB Data for (2629) Rudra". Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB). Retrieved 24 September 2018.
  4. ^ "Asteroid (2629) Rudra". AstDyS-2, Asteroids – Dynamic Site. Retrieved 24 September 2018.
  5. ^ a b c d e Alí-Lagoa, V.; Delbo', M. (July 2017). "Sizes and albedos of Mars-crossing asteroids from WISE/NEOWISE data". Astronomy and Astrophysics. 603: 8. arXiv:1705.10263. Bibcode:2017A&A...603A..55A. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/201629917. S2CID 119224590.
  6. ^ a b c d e Usui, 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)
  7. ^ a b Waszczak, Adam; Chang, Chan-Kao; Ofek, Eran O.; Laher, Russ; Masci, Frank; Levitan, David; et al. (September 2015). "Asteroid Light Curves from the Palomar Transient Factory Survey: Rotation Periods and Phase Functions from Sparse Photometry". The Astronomical Journal. 150 (3): 35. arXiv:1504.04041. Bibcode:2015AJ....150...75W. doi:10.1088/0004-6256/150/3/75. S2CID 8342929.
  8. ^ "Asteroid 2629 Rudra". Small Bodies Data Ferret. Retrieved 24 September 2018.
  9. ^ a b c Mainzer, A. K.; Bauer, J. M.; Cutri, R. M.; Grav, T.; Kramer, E. A.; Masiero, J. R.; et al. (June 2016). "NEOWISE Diameters and Albedos V1.0". NASA Planetary Data System: EAR-A-COMPIL-5-NEOWISEDIAM-V1.0. Bibcode:2016PDSS..247.....M. Retrieved 24 September 2018.
  10. ^ a b c Nugent, C. R.; Mainzer, A.; Masiero, J.; Bauer, J.; Cutri, R. M.; Grav, T.; et al. (December 2015). "NEOWISE Reactivation Mission Year One: Preliminary Asteroid Diameters and Albedos". The Astrophysical Journal. 814 (2): 13. arXiv:1509.02522. Bibcode:2015ApJ...814..117N. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/814/2/117. S2CID 9341381.
  11. ^ a b c Alí-Lagoa, V.; Licandro, J.; Gil-Hutton, R.; Cañ; ada-Assandri, M.; Delbo', M.; et al. (June 2016). "Differences between the Pallas collisional family and similarly sized B-type asteroids". Astronomy and Astrophysics. 591: 11. Bibcode:2016A&A...591A..14A. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/201527660. hdl:11336/63614.
  12. ^ "MPC/MPO/MPS Archive". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 24 September 2018.
  13. ^ a b Nugent, C. R.; Mainzer, A.; Bauer, J.; Cutri, R. M.; Kramer, E. A.; Grav, T.; et al. (September 2016). "NEOWISE Reactivation Mission Year Two: Asteroid Diameters and Albedos". The Astronomical Journal. 152 (3): 12. arXiv:1606.08923. Bibcode:2016AJ....152...63N. doi:10.3847/0004-6256/152/3/63.
  14. ^ a b Alí-Lagoa, V.; de León, J.; Licandro, J.; Delbó, M.; Campins, H.; Pinilla-Alonso, N.; et al. (June 2013). "Physical properties of B-type asteroids from WISE data". Astronomy and Astrophysics. 554: 16. arXiv:1303.5487. Bibcode:2013A&A...554A..71A. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/201220680. S2CID 119214002.
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