Terpsichore (
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 ...
: 81 Terpsichore) is a large and very dark
main-belt asteroid
An asteroid is a minor planet of the inner Solar System. Sizes and shapes of asteroids vary significantly, ranging from 1-meter rocks to a dwarf planet almost 1000 km in diameter; they are rocky, metallic or icy bodies with no atmosphere.
...
. It has most probably a very primitive
carbonaceous composition. It was found by the prolific
comet discoverer
Ernst Tempel on September 30, 1864.
[ It is named after Terpsichore, the Muse of ]dance
Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...
in Greek mythology.
Photometric observations of the minor planet in 2011 gave a rotation period
The rotation period of a celestial object (e.g., star, gas giant, planet, moon, asteroid) may refer to its sidereal rotation period, i.e. the time that the object takes to complete a single revolution around its axis of rotation relative to the ...
of with an amplitude of in magnitude. This result is consistent with previous determinations.[ Two stellar occultation events involving this asteroid were observed from multiple sites in 2009. The resulting chords matched a smooth elliptical cross-section with dimensions of × .][
]
In popular culture
A space station orbiting 81 Terpsichore is the main setting in the science fiction story The Dark Colony (Asteroid Police Book 1) by Richard Penn.
References
External links
*
*
Terpsichore asteroids
Terpsichore
Terpsichore
C-type asteroids (Tholen)
Cb-type asteroids (SMASS)
18640930
{{C-beltasteroid-stub