| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | A. Vagnozzi |
| Discovery site | Santa Lucia Obs. |
| Discovery date | 30 August 1997 |
| Designations | |
| (10208) Germanicus | |
| Pronunciation | /dʒərˈmænɪkəs/[2] |
Named after | Germanicus (Ancient Roman general)[3] |
| 1997 QN1 · 1987 QJ7 1994 WP12 | |
| main-belt · Flora[4] | |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 28.69 yr (10,478 days) |
| Aphelion | 2.6849AU |
| Perihelion | 1.7860 AU |
| 2.2354 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.2011 |
| 3.34yr (1,221 days) | |
| 351.10° | |
| 0° 17m 41.64s / day | |
| Inclination | 4.5619° |
| 223.63° | |
| 115.01° | |
| Knownsatellites | 1[5][6][a] |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 2.87±0.62 km[7] 3.50 km(taken)[4] 3.503 km[8] 3.552±0.202 km[9][10] |
| 3.1291±0.0002 h[11] 3.3484±0.0001 h[5] 3.3493±0.0006h[b] | |
| 0.1747[4][8] 0.267±0.027[9][10] 0.36±0.19[7] | |
| S[4] | |
| 14.2±0.2(R)[5] · 14.3[9] · 14.40[7] · 14.5[1] · 14.79±0.139[4][8] | |
10208 Germanicus, provisional designation1997 QN1, is a stonyFlorianasteroid andbinary system from the inner regions of theasteroid belt, approximately 3.5 kilometers in diameter.
It was discovered on 30 August 1997, by Italian amateur astronomerAntonio Vagnozzi at theSanta Lucia Stroncone Astronomical Observatory in Stroncone, Italy, and named for ancient Roman generalGermanicus. The asteroid'sminor-planet moon was discovered in 2007.
Germanicus is a member of theFlora family, one of the largest families ofstony asteroids. It orbits the Sun in theinner main-belt at a distance of 1.8–2.7 AU once every 3 years and 4 months (1,221 days). Its orbit has aneccentricity of 0.20 and aninclination of 5° with respect to theecliptic.[1] It was first observed atCrimea–Nauchnij andBrorfelde Observatory in August 1987, extending the body'sobservation arc by 10 years prior to its official discovery observation at Stroncone.[3]
According to the survey carried out by NASA'sWide-field Infrared Survey Explorer with its subsequentNEOWISE mission,Germanicus measures 2.87 and 3.552 kilometers in diameter and its surface has analbedo of 0.36 and 0.267, respectively.[7][9][10] TheCollaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link adoptsPetr Pravec's revised WISE-data, that is, an albedo of 0.1747 and a diameter of 3.50 kilometers with anabsolute magnitude of 14.79.[4]
In August 2007, a rotationallightcurve ofGermanicus was obtained from photometric observations by an international group of astronomers. Lightcurve analysis gave arotation period of 3.1291 hours with a brightness variation of 0.13magnitude (U=n.a.). It was also revealed thatGermanicus is orbited by aminor-planet moon every 58.55 hours. The system has a high secondary-to-primary mean-diameter ratio of 0.46.[5][a] This translates into a satellite diameter of 1.48 kilometers (based on a primary-diameter of 3.23 kilometers).[6]
Thisminor planet was named for the ancient Roman general and poetGermanicus (15 BC – AD 19), who led several successful campaigns into Germania.[3] Germanicus was also the nephew and designated heir of the Roman EmperorTiberius. As a poet, he wrote "Aratea", an astronomical treatise, which illustrated copy is known as theLeiden Aratea.[3] The approved naming citation was published by theMinor Planet Center on 27 May 2010 (M.P.C. 70407).[12]
