| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | E. W. Elst |
| Discovery site | CERGA(Caussols Obs.) |
| Discovery date | 27 January 1993 |
| Designations | |
| (10121) Arzamas | |
Named after | Arzamas(Russian city)[2] |
| 1993 BS4 · 1994 GA11 2118 T-1 | |
| main-belt · Themis[3] | |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 46.12 yr (16,844 days) |
| Aphelion | 3.6918AU |
| Perihelion | 2.7164 AU |
| 3.2041 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.1522 |
| 5.74yr (2,095 days) | |
| 319.65° | |
| 0° 10m 18.48s / day | |
| Inclination | 0.8917° |
| 30.729° | |
| 263.08° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 10.28 km(calculated)[3] 10.757±0.391 km[4][5] |
| 12.1±0.3h[6] 12.1991±0.0060 h[7] | |
| 0.080±0.024[5] 0.08(assumed)[3] 0.0801±0.0237[4] | |
| C[3] | |
| 13.2[4] · 13.375±0.003[7] · 13.4[1][3] | |
10121 Arzamas, provisional designation1993 BS4, is a dark Themistianasteroid from the outer region of theasteroid belt, approximately 10 kilometers in diameter. The asteroid was discovered on 27 January 1993, by Belgian astronomerEric Elst atCaussols(010) in southeastern France.[8] It was later named after the Russian city ofArzamas.[2]
Arzamas is a member of theThemis family, a dynamical family of outer main-belt asteroids with nearly co-planarecliptical orbits. It orbits the Sun in theouter main-belt at a distance of 2.7–3.7 AU once every 5 years and 9 months (2,095 days). Its orbit has aneccentricity of 0.15 and aninclination of 1° with respect to theecliptic.[1]
The body'sobservation arc begins 22 years prior to its official discovery observation, when it was identified as2118 T-1 atPalomar Observatory during the firstPalomar–Leiden Trojan survey in 1971.[8]
In February 2010, two rotationallightcurves ofArzamas were obtained from photometric observations at thePalomar Transient Factory in California. Lightcurve analysis gave arotation period of12.1 and12.1991 hours with a brightness variation of 0.7 and 0.6magnitude, respectively (U=2/2).[6][7]
According to theNEOWISE mission of NASA's space-basedWide-field Infrared Survey Explorer,Arzamas measures 10.8 kilometer in diameter, and its surface has analbedo of 0.08.[4][5] TheCollaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link also assumes an albedo of 0.08, characterizes it as aC-type asteroid, and calculates a diameter of 10.3 kilometers with anabsolute magnitude of 13.4.[3]
Thisminor planet was named after the Russian city ofArzamas, a major transit center on the road from Moscow to the eastern parts of the country. It was founded in 1578 byIvan the Terrible and is located on the Tyosha River, known for making leather and dyeing fabrics ever since.[2][8] The official naming citation was published by theMinor Planet Center on 24 November 2007 (M.P.C. 61266).[9]
