Lomia (

minor planet designation A formal minor-planet designation is, in its final form, a number–name combination given to a minor planet (asteroid, centaur, trans-Neptunian object and dwarf planet but not comet). Such designation always features a leading number (catalog or ...

: 117 Lomia) is a large main-belt asteroid that has a nearly circular orbit; the

orbital eccentricity In astrodynamics, the orbital eccentricity of an astronomical object is a dimensionless parameter that determines the amount by which its orbit around another body deviates from a perfect circle. A value of 0 is a circular orbit, values betwee ...

is 0.029. It was discovered by French astronomer

Alphonse Borrelly Alphonse Louis Nicolas Borrelly (December 8, 1842 – February 28, 1926) was a French astronomer. He joined the Marseille Observatory in 1864. In the course of his career, he discovered a number of asteroids and comets, including the periodic c ...

on September 12, 1871, from the

Marseilles Observatory Marseille Observatory (french: Observatoire de Marseille) is an astronomical observatory located in Marseille, France, with a history that goes back to the early 18th century. In its 1877 incarnation, it was the discovery site of a group of gala ...

. The preliminary

orbital elements Orbital elements are the parameters required to uniquely identify a specific orbit. In celestial mechanics these elements are considered in two-body systems using a Kepler orbit. There are many different ways to mathematically describe the same ...

were published in the following year by German astronomer

Friedrich Tietjen Friedrich Tietjen (1832 in Westerstede, Oldenburg – 1895 in Berlin) was a German astronomer. He was director of the ''Astronomisches Rechen-Institut'' (ARI) from 1874 until his death in 1895. The Minor Planet Center credits him with the di ...

. The reason for the name is uncertain, but

Lutz D. Schmadel Lutz Dieter Schmadel (2 July 1942, in Berlin – 21 October 2016) was a German astronomer and a prolific discoverer of asteroids, who worked at the Astronomisches Rechen-Institut (ARI) of the University of Heidelberg. His special interest was th ...

believes it is most likely a misspelling of Lamia, the female demon of

Greek mythology A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the Cosmogony, origin and Cosmology#Metaphysical co ...

(the asteroid

248 Lameia Lameia (minor planet designation: 248 Lameia) is a typical main belt asteroid. It was discovered by Austrian astronomer Johann Palisa on 5 June 1885 in Vienna and was named after the Lamia, a lover of Zeus in Ancient Greek mythology. 248 Lameia is ...

is also named after this figure). Photometric observations of this asteroid in 1985 gave a light curve with a period of hours and a brightness variation of in magnitude. The curve is symmetrical with a single maxima and minima. This object has a spectrum that matches an XC classification; occupying the transition range between an X-type and a C-type asteroid. It has an estimated cross-section diameter of ~148 km. Eight

occultation An occultation is an event that occurs when one object is hidden from the observer by another object that passes between them. The term is often used in astronomy, but can also refer to any situation in which an object in the foreground blocks ...

s of stars by Lomia have so far been observed, between 2000 and 2018. Four of these events provided two or more chords across the asteroid, including a four-chord event in 2003.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lomia 000117 000117 000117 Discoveries by Alphonse Borrelly Named minor planets 000117 18710912