| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Indiana University (Indiana Asteroid Program) |
| Discovery site | Goethe Link Obs. |
| Discovery date | 7 September 1962 |
| Designations | |
| (1827) Atkinson | |
Named after | Robert d'Escourt Atkinson (British astronomer)[2] |
| 1962 RK · 1931 VC 1955 FL · 1967 TL 1973 EQ | |
| main-belt · (middle) | |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 85.41 yr (31,196 days) |
| Aphelion | 3.1907AU |
| Perihelion | 2.2291 AU |
| 2.7099 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.1774 |
| 4.46yr (1,629 days) | |
| 43.640° | |
| 0° 13m 15.24s / day | |
| Inclination | 4.5222° |
| 220.56° | |
| 239.58° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 8.855±0.301 km[3] |
| 0.249±0.052[3] | |
| Tholen = DU[1] B–V = 0.807[1] | |
| 12.39[1] | |
1827 Atkinson, provisional designation1962 RK, is a backgroundasteroid from the central regions of theasteroid belt, approximately 9 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 7 September 1962, byIU'sIndiana Asteroid Program atGoethe Link Observatory near Brooklyn, Indiana, United States.[4] The asteroid was named after British astronomerRobert d'Escourt Atkinson.[2]
Atkinson is not a member of any knownasteroid family.[5] It orbits the Sun in thecentral main-belt at a distance of 2.2–3.2 AU once every 4 years and 6 months (1,629 days). Its orbit has aneccentricity of 0.18 and aninclination of 5° with respect to theecliptic.[1]
The body'sobservation arc begins with its first identification as1931 VC atUccle Observatory in November 1931, almost 31 years prior to its official discovery observation at Goethe Link.[4]
In theTholen classification,Atkinson is similar to a darkD-type asteroid, though with an unusual spectrum (DU).[1] This strongly disagrees with thealbedo obtained by theWide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE), which indicates that is rather a stonyS-type asteroid.[3]
As of 2017, no rotationallightcurve ofAtkinson has been obtained from photometric observations. The asteroid'srotation period, shape and poles remain unknown.[1][5]
According to the survey carried out by theNEOWISE mission of NASA'sWide-field Infrared Survey Explorer,Atkinson measures 8.855 kilometers in diameter and its surface has analbedo of 0.249.[3]
Thisminor planet was named after British astronomer, physicist and inventor,Robert d'Escourt Atkinson (1898–1982), noted for his contributions to fundamental astronomy. Atkinson pioneered in studying nuclear energy-generation in the Sun and stars.[2] The officialnaming citation was published by theMinor Planet Center on 15 October 1977 (M.P.C. 4236).[6]
