3074 Popov, provisional designation , is a carbonaceous Nysian
asteroid from the inner regions of the
asteroid belt
The asteroid belt is a torus-shaped region in the Solar System, located roughly between the orbits of the planets Jupiter and Mars. It contains a great many solid, irregularly shaped bodies, of many sizes, but much smaller than planets, c ...
, approximately in diameter. It was discovered on 24 December 1979, by Soviet–Russian astronomer
Lyudmila Zhuravleva at the
Crimean Astrophysical Observatory
The Crimean Astrophysical Observatory (CrAO, obs. code: 095) is located at Nauchnij research campus, near the Central Crimean city of Bakhchysarai, on the Crimean peninsula. CrAO is often called simply by its location and campus name, ...
in Nauchnyj on the Crimean peninsula. The
B-type asteroid
B-type asteroids are a relatively uncommon type of carbonaceous asteroid, falling into the wider C-group; the 'B' indicates these objects are spectrally blue. In the asteroid population, B-class objects can be found in the outer asteroid belt, ...
has an unknown
rotation period. It was named after Russian physicist
Alexander Stepanovich Popov
Alexander Stepanovich Popov (sometimes spelled Popoff; russian: Алекса́ндр Степа́нович Попо́в; – ) was a Russian physicist, who was one of the first persons to invent a radio receiving device. declassified 8 Janua ...
, an early
radio
Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmi ...
pioneer in Russia.
Orbit and classification
''Popov'' is a member of the carbonaceous subgroup of the
Nysa family
The Nysa family (adj. ''Nysian''; FIN: 405) is part of the Nysa–Polana complex, the largest cluster of asteroid families in the asteroid belt. It is located in the inner region of the asteroid belt, orbiting the Sun between 2.41 and 2.5 A ...
(), a group of asteroids in the inner main-belt not far from the
Kirkwood gap
A Kirkwood gap is a gap or dip in the distribution of the semi-major axes (or equivalently of the orbital periods) of the orbits of main-belt asteroids. They correspond to the locations of orbital resonances with Jupiter.
For example, there a ...
at 2.5 AU, a depleted zone where a 3:1 orbital resonance with the orbit of Jupiter exists. The Nysian group is named after its largest member
44 Nysa
Nysa (minor planet designation: 44 Nysa) is a large and very bright main-belt asteroid, and the brightest member of the Nysian asteroid family. It is classified as a rare class E asteroid and is probably the largest of this type (though 55 Pand ...
.
It orbits the Sun in the
inner asteroid belt at a distance of 2.1–2.6
AU once every 3 years and 7 months (1,307 days;
semi-major axis of 2.34 AU). Its orbit has an
eccentricity
Eccentricity or eccentric may refer to:
* Eccentricity (behavior), odd behavior on the part of a person, as opposed to being "normal"
Mathematics, science and technology Mathematics
* Off-Centre (geometry), center, in geometry
* Eccentricity (g ...
of 0.11 and an
inclination
Orbital inclination measures the tilt of an object's orbit around a celestial body. It is expressed as the angle between a reference plane and the orbital plane or axis of direction of the orbiting object.
For a satellite orbiting the Eart ...
of 2
° with respect to the
ecliptic
The ecliptic or ecliptic plane is the orbital plane of the Earth around the Sun. From the perspective of an observer on Earth, the Sun's movement around the celestial sphere over the course of a year traces out a path along the ecliptic agains ...
.
The asteroid was first observed as at the
Purple Mountain Observatory
The Purple Mountain Observatory (), also known as Zijinshan Astronomical Observatory is an astronomical observatory located on the Purple Mountain in the east of Nanjing.
Description
The Purple Mountain Observatory was established in 1934 f ...
in October 1964. The body's
observation arc
In observational astronomy, the observation arc (or arc length) of a Solar System body is the time period between its earliest and latest observations, used for tracing the body's path. It is usually given in days or years. The term is mostly use ...
begins with its observations as at Crimea–Nauchnij in December 1975, or four years prior to its official discovery observation.
Physical characteristics
In the
SMASS classification
An asteroid spectral type is assigned to asteroids based on their emission spectrum, color, and sometimes albedo. These types are thought to correspond to an asteroid's surface composition. For small bodies that are not internally differentiat ...
, ''Popov'' is a
B-type asteroid
B-type asteroids are a relatively uncommon type of carbonaceous asteroid, falling into the wider C-group; the 'B' indicates these objects are spectrally blue. In the asteroid population, B-class objects can be found in the outer asteroid belt, ...
, which have a "brighter" surface than the common carbonaceous
C-types.
Diameter and albedo
According to the survey carried out by the
NEOWISE
Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE, observatory code C51, Explorer 92 and SMEX-6) is a NASA infrared astronomy space telescope in the Explorers Program. It was launched in December 2009, and placed in hibernation mode in February 201 ...
mission of NASA's
Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer
Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE, observatory code C51, Explorer 92 and SMEX-6) is a NASA infrared astronomy space telescope in the Explorers Program. It was launched in December 2009, and placed in hibernation mode in February 201 ...
, ''Popov'' measures 9.875 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an
albedo
Albedo (; ) is the measure of the diffuse reflection of solar radiation out of the total solar radiation and measured on a scale from 0, corresponding to a black body that absorbs all incident radiation, to 1, corresponding to a body that refl ...
of 0.070.
Rotation period
As of 2018, no rotational
lightcurve
In astronomy, a light curve is a graph of light intensity of a celestial object or region as a function of time, typically with the magnitude of light received on the y axis and with time on the x axis. The light is usually in a particular freq ...
of ''Popov'' has been obtained from
photometric observations. The body's
rotation period, shape and
poles
Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, who share a common history, culture, the Polish language and are identified with the country of Poland in C ...
remain unknown.
Naming
This
minor planet
According to the International Astronomical Union (IAU), a minor planet is an astronomical object in direct orbit around the Sun that is exclusively classified as neither a planet nor a comet. Before 2006, the IAU officially used the term ''mino ...
was named after Russian physicist
Alexander Stepanovich Popov
Alexander Stepanovich Popov (sometimes spelled Popoff; russian: Алекса́ндр Степа́нович Попо́в; – ) was a Russian physicist, who was one of the first persons to invent a radio receiving device. declassified 8 Janua ...
(1859–1906), who is considered to be the
inventor of radio in his homeland and in eastern European countries.
The official naming citation was published by the
Minor Planet Center on 31 May 1988 ().
The lunar crater ''
Popov'' was also named in his honor.
References
External links
Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB) query form
)
Dictionary of Minor Planet Names Google books
– Minor Planet Center
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Popov
003074
Discoveries by Lyudmila Zhuravleva
Named minor planets
003074
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