_Lixiaohua.png) Shape model ofLixiaohua from itslightcurve | |
| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Purple Mountain Obs. |
| Discovery site | Purple Mountain Obs. |
| Discovery date | 30 October 1964 |
| Designations | |
| (3556) Lixiaohua | |
Named after | Li Xiaohua (Chinese philanthropist)[2] |
| 1964 UO · 1981 YT1 | |
| main-belt · (outer) Lixiaohua/Gantrisch[3][4] | |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 52.49 yr (19,173 days) |
| Aphelion | 3.8577AU |
| Perihelion | 2.4883 AU |
| 3.1730 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.2158 |
| 5.65yr (2,064 days) | |
| 169.06° | |
| 0° 10m 27.84s / day | |
| Inclination | 9.2364° |
| 240.89° | |
| 143.70° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| 20.085±0.036 km[5] | |
| 0.035±0.004[5] | |
| 12.8[1] | |
3556 Lixiaohua (prov. designation:1964 UO) is a dark Lixiaohuaasteroid from the outer region of theasteroid belt, approximately 20 kilometers (12 miles) in diameter. It is the parent body of theLixiaohua family. The asteroid was discovered on 30 October 1964, by astronomers at thePurple Mountain Observatory near Nanjing, China.[6] It was named after Chinese philanthropistLi Xiaohua.[2]
Lixiaohua is the parent body and namesake of theLixiaohua family,[3][4] a smallerasteroid family of more than 700 known members which consists ofC-type andX-type asteroid.[7]: 23 The family is located in a zone of theouter main-belt where severalorbital resonance overlap. Members of this family are also prone to close encounters with other large asteroids such as with the dwarf planetCeres.[8] With a diameter of 35 kilometers, the family's largest member is3330 Gantrisch, which is the reason why the Lixiaohua family is often called "Gantrisch family". It is estimated that the family is155±36 million years old.[8]
It orbits the Sun at a distance of 2.5–3.9 AU once every 5 years and 8 months (2,064 days). Its orbit has aneccentricity of 0.22 and aninclination of 9° with respect to theecliptic.[1] The body'sobservation arc begins with its official discovery observation at Nanjing in 1964.[6]
Thisminor planet was named after Chinese philanthropist and industrialist from Beijing, who establish several schools in remote areas of China.[2] The official naming citation was published by theMinor Planet Center on 5 January 1996 (M.P.C. 26424).[9]
As of 2017, no rotationallightcurve ofLixiaohua has been obtained from photometric observations. The asteroid'srotation period, poles and shape remains unknown.[10]
According to the survey carried out by theNEOWISE mission of NASA'sWide-field Infrared Survey Explorer,Lixiaohua measures 20.085 kilometers in diameter and its surface has a lowalbedo of 0.035.[5]
