| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | K. Reinmuth |
| Discovery site | Heidelberg Obs. |
| Discovery date | 7 January 1934 |
| Designations | |
| (1298) Nocturna | |
| Pronunciation | /nɒkˈtɜːrnə/[2] |
Named after | nocturnus[3] (Lat. nocturnal; nightly) |
| 1934 AE · A904 RA | |
| main-belt · (outer)[4] | |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 112.66 yr (41,149 days) |
| Aphelion | 3.5931AU |
| Perihelion | 2.6577 AU |
| 3.1254 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.1496 |
| 5.53yr (2,018 days) | |
| 151.34° | |
| 0° 10m 42.24s / day | |
| Inclination | 5.4892° |
| 299.99° | |
| 58.719° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 37.80±0.73 km[5] 37.802±0.727 km[5] 39.93 km(derived)[4] 40.04±2.0 km[6] 41.09±13.75 km[7] 42.79±0.88 km[8] 44.62±12.27 km[9] |
| 34.80±0.07h[10] | |
| 0.04±0.02[9] 0.04±0.03[7] 0.0441(derived)[4] 0.051±0.002[8] 0.054±0.010[5] 0.0578±0.006[6] | |
| X[11] · C[4] | |
| 10.70[6][8] · 10.90[5] · 11.00[1][4][7] · 11.03[9] · 11.16±0.32[11] | |
1298 Nocturna, provisional designation1934 AE, is a darkasteroid from the outer regions of theasteroid belt, approximately 40 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 7 January 1934, by German astronomerKarl Reinmuth at theHeidelberg Observatory in southwest Germany.[12] The asteroid's name is the Feminine adjective of nocturnus, "nightly".[3]
Nocturna is a non-family asteroid of the main belt'sbackground population. It orbits the Sun in theouter asteroid belt at a distance of 2.7–3.6 AU once every 5 years and 6 months (2,018 days). Its orbit has aneccentricity of 0.15 and aninclination of 5° with respect to theecliptic.[1]
The asteroid was first identified asA904 RA at Heidelberg in September 1904. The body'sobservation arc begins 30 years later, with its official discovery observation at Heidelberg in 1934.[12]
Nocturna has been characterized as anX-type asteroid byPanSTARRS photometric survey.[11] It is also an assumed carbonaceousC-type asteroid.[4]
In February 2006, a rotationallightcurve ofNocturna was obtained from photometric observations by French amateur astronomerRené Roy. Lightcurve analysis gave arotation period of 34.80 hours with a brightness amplitude of 0.11magnitude (U=2).[10]Nocturna has a longer-than-average period, as most asteroidsrotate within less than 20 hours once around their axis.
According to the surveys carried out by the Infrared Astronomical SatelliteIRAS, the JapaneseAkari satellite and theNEOWISE mission of NASA'sWide-field Infrared Survey Explorer,Nocturna measures between 37.80 and 44.62 kilometers in diameter and its surface has analbedo between 0.04 and 0.0578.[5][6][7][8][9]
TheCollaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link derives an albedo of 0.0441 and a diameter of 39.93 kilometers based on anabsolute magnitude of 11.0.[4]
Thisminor planet was named "Nocturna" after the feminine adjective of nocturnus which means "nightly". The name was proposed by German astronomer Gustave Stracke after whom an entire sequence of asteroids,(1227) to(1234), had been named indirectly. The official naming citation was mentioned inThe Names of the Minor Planets byPaul Herget in 1955 (H 119).[3]
