| Discovery [1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | A. Mrkos |
| Discovery site | Kleť Obs. |
| Discovery date | 14 August 1982 |
| Designations | |
| (6469) Armstrong | |
Named after | Neil Armstrong (astronaut,Apollo 11)[2] |
| 1982 PC · 1969 UK1 1972 NN · 1979 WZ6 1982 QL | |
| main-belt · Flora [3] | |
| Orbital characteristics [1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 47.45 yr (17,332 days) |
| Aphelion | 2.6725AU |
| Perihelion | 1.7663 AU |
| 2.2194 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.2041 |
| 3.31yr (1,208 days) | |
| 226.43° | |
| 0° 17m 53.16s / day | |
| Inclination | 3.9595° |
| 159.41° | |
| 150.61° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 2.89 km(calculated)[3] 3.720±0.392 km[4][5] |
| 5.9648±0.1423h[6] 6.040±0.040 h[7] | |
| 0.24(assumed)[3] 0.243±0.039[4][5] | |
| S [3] | |
| 14.5[1] · 14.340±0.250(R)[7] · 14.3[4] · 14.416±0.007(R)[6] · 14.87[3] | |
6469 Armstrong, provisional designation1982 PC, is a stony Floraasteroid from the inner regions of theasteroid belt, approximately 3 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered by Czech astronomerAntonín Mrkos atKleť Observatory on 14 August 1982.[8] The asteroid was later named for American astronautNeil Armstrong.[2]
Armstrong 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 1.8–2.7 AU once every 3 years and 4 months (1,208 days). Its orbit has aneccentricity of 0.20 and aninclination of 4° with respect to theecliptic.[1]
In October 1969, it was first identified as1969 UK1 atCrimea–Nauchnij. The body'sobservation arc began 10 years prior to its official discovery at Klet Observatory, with aprecovery taken at Crimea–Nauchnij in July 1972.[8]
Armstrong is a presumedS-type asteroid.[3]
Two rotationallightcurves ofArmstrong were obtained from photometric observations made at thePalomar Transient Factory, California, in January and February 2014. The lightcurves gave a concurringrotation period of6.040±0.040 and5.9648±0.1423 hours with a brightness variation of 0.65 and 0.70 inmagnitude, respectively (U=2/2).[7][6]
According to the survey carried out by theNEOWISE mission of NASA's space-basedWide-field Infrared Survey Explorer,Armstrong measures 3.7 kilometers in diameter and its surface has analbedo of 0.24.[4][5]
TheCollaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes an identical albedo of 0.24 – derived from8 Flora, the largest member and namesake of its orbital family – and calculates a diameter of 2.9 kilometers, based on a weaker absolute magnitude of 14.87.[3]
Thisminor planet was named after American astronautNeil Armstrong, on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of theApollo 11 mission.[2]
On 20 July 1969, Armstrong was one of the first two humans toland on the Moon, and thefirst person to walk on it, shortly followed byBuzz Aldrin, after whom the asteroid6470 Aldrin is named. The minor planet6471 Collins is named afterMichael Collins, the third crew member of the Apollo 11 mission. In 1966, Armstrong also conducted the first docking in space together withDavid Scott aboardGemini 8. The asteroid's name was suggested by Czech astronomersJana Tichá,Miloš Tichý andZdeněk Moravec, who observed it during its 1995-opposition, shortly before being numbered.[2] The approved naming citation was published by theMinor Planet Center on 4 May 1999 (M.P.C. 34623).[9]
The lunar craterArmstrong is also named in his honor.
