| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Indiana University (Indiana Asteroid Program) |
| Discovery site | Goethe Link Obs. |
| Discovery date | 13 October 1953 |
| Designations | |
| (1763) Williams | |
Named after | Kenneth P. Williams[2] (professor of mathematics at IU) |
| 1953 TN2 · 1939 EO 1953 VJ · 1966 TN | |
| main-belt · Flora[3][4] background[5] | |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 63.73 yr (23,276 days) |
| Aphelion | 2.6340AU |
| Perihelion | 1.7436 AU |
| 2.1888 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.2034 |
| 3.24yr (1,183 days) | |
| 297.61° | |
| 0° 18m 15.84s / day | |
| Inclination | 4.2352° |
| 304.47° | |
| 28.831° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 6.38±1.47 km[6] 6.982±0.183 km[7][8] 7.47 km(calculated)[3] |
| 8h[9] 36 h[a] | |
| 0.24(assumed)[3] 0.32±0.16[6] 0.330±0.086[7] 0.3305±0.0865[8] | |
| S[3] | |
| 12.6[8] · 12.68±0.26[10] · 12.80[1][3][6] | |
1763 Williams, provisional designation1953 TN2, is a stony Florianasteroid from the inner regions of theasteroid belt, approximately 7 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 13 October 1953, by astronomers of theIndiana Asteroid Program atGoethe Link Observatory in Indiana, United States.[11] The asteroid was named afterKenneth P. Williams, professor of mathematics atIndiana University.[2]
Based on itsosculating Keplerianorbital elements,Williams qualifies as a member of theFlora family (402), a giantasteroid family and the largest family of stony asteroids in the main-belt (according to Zappalà but not Nesvorý).[3][4] However, analysis usingproper orbital elements in ahierarchical clustering method showed thatWilliams is abackground asteroid, not belonging to any known family (Nesvorý, Milani and Knežević).[5]
The asteroid orbits the Sun in theinner main-belt at a distance of 1.7–2.6 AU once every 3 years and 3 months (1,183 days). Its orbit has aneccentricity of 0.20 and aninclination of 4° with respect to theecliptic.[1]
The asteroid was first identified as1939 EO atNice Observatory in March 1939. The body'sobservation arc begins with its official discovery observation in October 1953.[11]
Williams is an assumedS-type asteroid.[3]
In October 2008, a rotationallightcurve ofWilliams was obtained from photometric observations byPetr Pravec atOndřejov Observatory in the Czech Republic. Lightcurve analysis gave arotation period of at least 36 hours with a brightness amplitude of more than 0.30magnitude (U=2).[a][b] Another observation byPierre Antonini gave a period of 8 hours (U=1+).[9]
According to the survey carried out by theNEOWISE mission of NASA'sWide-field Infrared Survey Explorer,Williams measures 6.38 and 6.982 kilometers in diameter and its surface has analbedo of 0.32 and 0.3305, respectively.[6][7][8]
TheCollaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes an albedo of 0.24 – derived from8 Flora, the Flora family's largest member and namesake – and calculates a diameter of 7.47 kilometers based on anabsolute magnitude of 12.8.[3]
Thisminor planet was named in honor ofKenneth P. Williams (1887–1958), long-time professor of mathematics atIndiana University. He was known for his textbook, the calculation of the orbits of asteroids and comets, and his detailed analysis of the transits of Mercury from 1723 to 1927. He also wroteLincoln Finds a General, a five volume book about theAmerican Civil War.[2]
The name was proposed byFrank K. Edmondson, who initiated theIndiana Asteroid Program.[2] The officialnaming citation was published by theMinor Planet Center on 20 February 1971 (M.P.C. 3143).[12]
