| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Felix Aguilar Obs. |
| Discovery site | Leoncito |
| Discovery date | 22 January 1977 |
| Designations | |
| (4008) Corbin | |
Named after | Brenda & Thomas Corbin(American astronomer)[2] |
| 1977 BY · 1988 CN | |
| main-belt · Phocaea[3][4] | |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 40.37 yr (14,744 days) |
| Aphelion | 2.8548AU |
| Perihelion | 1.8637 AU |
| 2.3593 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.2100 |
| 3.62yr (1,324 days) | |
| 67.752° | |
| 0° 16m 19.2s / day | |
| Inclination | 25.514° |
| 167.21° | |
| 327.38° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 5.424±0.060[5] 6.011±0.054 km[6] 6.35 km(calculated)[3] |
| 6.203±0.001h[a] | |
| 0.23(assumed)[3] 0.264±0.068[5] 0.2836±0.0635[6] | |
| S[3][7] | |
| 13.1[6] · 13.2[1][3] · 13.32±0.32[7] | |
4008 Corbin, provisional designation1977 BY, is a stony Phocaeaasteroid from the inner regions of theasteroid belt, approximately 6 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 22 January 1977, by staff members of theFelix Aguilar Observatory's (formerly known as both, Yale-Columbia Southern Station, and Carlos U. Cesco Station, EACUC) at theLeoncito Astronomical Complex in Argentina.[8]
Corbin is a member of thePhocaea family (701),[4] a group of asteroids with similar orbital characteristics. It orbits the Sun in theinner main-belt at a distance of 1.9–2.9 AU once every 3 years and 7 months (1,324 days). Its orbit has aneccentricity of 0.21 and aninclination of 26° with respect to theecliptic.[1]
Corbin has been characterized as a common stonyS-type asteroid byPanSTARRS' photometric survey.[7]
A photometriclightcurve analysis by Czech astronomerPetr Pravec atOndřejov Observatory in 2010 rendered a well-definedrotation period of6.203±0.001 hours with a brightness amplitude of 0.12 inmagnitude (U=3).[a]
According to the survey carried out by theNEOWISE mission of NASA'sWide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, the asteroid has analbedo of 0.26 and 0.28 and a diameter of 5.4 and 6.0 kilometers, respectively,[5][6] while theCollaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link (CALL) assumes a somewhat lower albedo of 0.23 and calculates a correspondingly larger diameter of 6.4 kilometers.[3]
Thisminor planet was named after American coupleBrenda andThomas Corbin. He was an astronomer atUSNO, in charge of the Argentinian EACUC station, and involved in a number of astrometric projects, such as theAstrographic Catalogue Reference Stars. His wife Brenda, who also worked at the EACUC station, is prolific astronomical librarian, known for her work with theSpecial Libraries Association and inIAU'sWorking Group on Nomenclature.[2] The official naming citation was published by theMinor Planet Center on 11 February 1998(M.P.C. 31295).[9]
