| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | E. W. Elst |
| Discovery site | Rozhen Obs. |
| Discovery date | 20 September 1987 |
| Designations | |
| (6267) Rozhen | |
Named after | Rozhen Observatory (discovering observatory)[2] |
| 1987 SO9 · 1971 SP 1979 BR2 | |
| main-belt · Flora[3] | |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 67.30 yr (24,583 days) |
| Aphelion | 2.3582AU |
| Perihelion | 1.9663 AU |
| 2.1623 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.0906 |
| 3.18yr (1,161 days) | |
| 72.417° | |
| 0° 18m 36s / day | |
| Inclination | 2.1034° |
| 136.75° | |
| 315.64° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 3.02 km(calculated)[3] |
| 3.980±0.020h[4] 3.9847±0.0007 h[5] | |
| 0.24(assumed)[3] | |
| S[3] | |
| 14.270±0.120(R)[4] · 14.3[1] · 14.316±0.001(R)[5] · 14.77[3] · 14.79±0.28[6] | |
6267 Rozhen, provisional designation1987 SO9, is a stony Florianasteroid from the inner regions of theasteroid belt, approximately 3 kilometers in diameter. In 1987, the asteroid was discovered byEric Elst atRozhen Observatory, Bulgaria, and was later named after the discovering observatory.
Rozhen was discovered on 20 September 1987, by Belgian astronomerEric Elst atRozhen Observatory near Smoljan, Bulgaria.[7] For four days, between 27 and 31 January 2005, the body was briefly and erroneously renamed6267 Smolyan.[8] In November 1949, aprecovery was taken atPalomar Observatory, extending the body'sobservation arc by 38 years prior to its official discovery observation at Rozhen.[7]
TheS-type asteroid is a member of theFlora family, one of the largest groups of stony asteroids in the main-belt. It orbits the Sun in theinner main-belt at a distance of 2.0–2.4 AU once every 3 years and 2 months (1,161 days). Its orbit has aneccentricity of 0.09 and aninclination of 2° with respect to theecliptic.[1]
In January 2014, two rotationallightcurves ofRozhen were obtained from photometric observations at thePalomar Transient Factory in California, United States. They gave arotation period of3.9847 and3.980 hours with a brightness variation of 0.14 and 0.12magnitude, respectively (U=2/2).[4][5]
TheCollaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes analbedo of 0.24, derived from8 Flora, the asteroid family's largest member and namesake, and calculates a diameter of 3.0 kilometers with anabsolute magnitude of 14.77.[3]
Thisminor planet was named for the discoveringRozhen Observatory, also known as the "Bulgarian National Astronomical Observatory", that has been established at Rozhen in 1981.[2]
Rozhen is located near the city ofSmoljan and in proximity to the border with Greece. At 1700 meters above sea leavel, the observatory benefits from favorable instrumental and observational conditions. An exhaustive survey for the discovery of minor planets was launched at Rozhen in 1986.[2] The approved naming citation was published by theMinor Planet Center on 20 November 2002 (M.P.C. 47163).[9]
