| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | C. Jackson |
| Discovery site | Johannesburg Obs. |
| Discovery date | 3 April 1935 |
| Designations | |
| (1354) Botha | |
Named after | Louis Botha[2] (South African prime minister) |
| 1935 GK · 1925 RF 1930 KG · 1931 TP 1935 JK · 1953 TO1 1953 TY2 | |
| main-belt · (outer)[3] background[4] | |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 85.55 yr (31,248 days) |
| Aphelion | 3.8022AU |
| Perihelion | 2.4451 AU |
| 3.1237 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.2172 |
| 5.52yr (2,017 days) | |
| 255.58° | |
| 0° 10m 42.6s / day | |
| Inclination | 5.9581° |
| 28.715° | |
| 250.45° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 38.41±12.74 km[5] 41.732±0.504 km[6] 42.54±0.69 km[7] 46.567±0.550 km[8] 48.75±5.8 km[9] 48.82 km(derived)[3] 70.34±0.88 km[10] |
| 4h(poor)[11] | |
| 0.014±0.003[10] 0.0225±0.006[9] 0.0246±0.0047[8] 0.0295(derived)[3] 0.030±0.001[7] 0.05±0.04[5] | |
| C(assumed)[3] | |
| 11.00[1][3][10] · 11.03[5] · 11.20±0.35[12] · 11.30[7][8][9] | |
1354 Botha, provisional designation1935 GK, is an exceptionally dark backgroundasteroid from the outer regions of theasteroid belt, approximately 46 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 3 April 1935, by South-African astronomerCyril Jackson at theUnion Observatory in Johannesburg.[13] The asteroid was named after South African prime ministerLouis Botha.[2]
Botha is a non-family asteroid of the main belt'sbackground population.[4] It orbits the Sun in theouter asteroid belt at a distance of 2.4–3.8 AU once every 5 years and 6 months (2,017 days;semi-major axis of 3.12 AU). Its orbit has aneccentricity of 0.22 and aninclination of 6° with respect to theecliptic.[1]
The asteroid was first identified as1925 RF atHeidelberg Observatory in September 1929. The body'sobservation arc begins at with its identification as1931 TP atSimeiz Observatory in October 1931, more than three years prior to its official discovery observation at Johannesburge.[13]
Botha is an assumed carbonaceousC-type asteroid.[3]
In September 2003, a fragmentary rotationallightcurve ofBotha was obtained from photometric observations by Swiss astronomersStefano Sposetti andRaoul Behrend. Lightcurve analysis gave a tentativerotation period of 4 hours with a brightness amplitude of 0.21magnitude (U=1+).[11] As of 2017, no secure period has been obtained.[3]
According to the surveys carried out by the Infrared Astronomical SatelliteIRAS, the JapaneseAkari satellite and theNEOWISE mission of NASA'sWide-field Infrared Survey Explorer,Botha measures between 38.41 and 70.34 kilometers in diameter and its surface has analbedo between 0.014 and 0.05.[5][6][7][8][9][10]
TheCollaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link derives an albedo of 0.0295 and a diameter of 48.82 kilometers based on anabsolute magnitude of 11.0.[3]
Thisminor planet was named afterLouis Botha (1862–1919), the firstPrime Minister of South Africa of theUnion of South Africa, which existed between 1910 and 1961.[2] The officialnaming citation was published by theMinor Planet Center in April 1953 (M.P.C. 908).[14]
