| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | C. van Houten I. van Houten T. Gehrels |
| Discovery site | Palomar Obs. |
| Discovery date | 24 September 1960 |
| Designations | |
| (5010) Amenemhêt | |
| Pronunciation | /ˈæmənəmhɛt/[2] |
Named after | Amenemḥēt III (Pharaoh,12th Dyn.)[3] |
| 4594 P-L · 1981 EU32 1990 FA1 | |
| main-belt · (middle) | |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 61.77 yr (22,563 days) |
| Aphelion | 3.2675AU |
| Perihelion | 2.1604 AU |
| 2.7140 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.2040 |
| 4.47yr (1,633 days) | |
| 35.377° | |
| 0° 13m 13.44s / day | |
| Inclination | 14.660° |
| 173.36° | |
| 43.103° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 9.40 km(calculated)[4] |
| 3.2h[5] 3.390±0.002 h[6] | |
| 0.20(assumed)[4] | |
| SMASS =S[1] · S[4][7] | |
| 12.5[1][4] · 12.67±0.42[7] | |
5010 Amenemhêt is a stonyasteroid from the central region of theasteroid belt, approximately 9 kilometers in diameter.
It was discovered on 24 September 1960, by Dutch astronomer coupleIngrid andCornelis van Houten at Leiden, on photographic plates taken by Dutch–American astronomerTom Gehrels at the U.SPalomar Observatory, California, and assigned the provisional designation4594 P-L.[8] It was later named after the Egyptian pharaohAmenemhět III.[3]
Amenemhêt orbits the Sun in thecentral main-belt at a distance of 2.2–3.3 AU once every 4 years and 6 months (1,633 days). Its orbit has aneccentricity of 0.20 and aninclination of 15° with respect to theecliptic.[1] Itsobservation arc already begins in 1955, due toprecoveries taken at the U.S.Goethe Link Observatory in Indiana.[8]
In theSMASS taxonomic scheme,Amenemhêt is classified as a common stony asteroid with aS-type spectrum. It has also been characterized as a S-type byPan-STARRS' large-scale survey.[7]
A rotationallightcurve was obtained throughphotometric observations at the SerbianBelgrade Astronomical Observatory in May 2008. Lightcurve analysis showed aperiod of3.390 hours with a brightness amplitude of 0.18magnitude (U=3-),[6] superseding a previous lightcurve from two South-American observatories (U=1).[5]
TheCollaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes a standardalbedo for stony asteroids of 0.20 and calculates a diameter of 9.4 kilometers with anabsolute magnitude of 12.5.[4]
Thesurvey designation "P-L" stands forPalomar–Leiden, named after Palomar Observatory andLeiden Observatory, which collaborated on the fruitfulPalomar–Leiden survey in the 1960s. Gehrels used Palomar'sSamuel Oschin telescope – also known as the 48-inch Schmidt Telescope – and shipped thephotographic plates to Ingrid and Cornelis van Houten at Leiden whereastrometry was carried out. The trio are credited with the discovery of several thousand minor planets.[9]
Thisminor planet was named after the Egyptian pharaohAmenemhět III (1844–1797 B.C.), who built the Great Canal (Mer-Wer) and brought prosperity to theFaiyum Oasis by linking it with the Nile. The area then became a breadbasket for the country. At theHawara site in Faiyum, he built amortuary temple, which the Greek historianHerodotus referred to as "labyrinth". Amenemhět's father was the pharaohSesostris III(also see the minor planets4414 Sesostris and3092 Herodotus).[3] The official naming citation was published on 1 September 1993 (M.P.C. 22505).[10]
