| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | A. Patry |
| Discovery site | Nice Obs. |
| Discovery date | 28 January 1938 |
| Designations | |
| (1516) Henry | |
Named after | Paul and Prosper Henry (astronomers, opticians)[2] |
| 1938 BG · 1938 DM | |
| main-belt · (middle)[3] | |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 79.00 yr (28,854 days) |
| Aphelion | 3.1087AU |
| Perihelion | 2.1368 AU |
| 2.6227 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.1853 |
| 4.25yr (1,551 days) | |
| 216.91° | |
| 0° 13m 55.2s / day | |
| Inclination | 8.7440° |
| 125.84° | |
| 94.457° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 19.19±4.31 km[4] 19.92±1.7 km[5] 19.98 km(derived)[3] 26.163±0.138 km[6] 26.442±0.150 km[7] 27.70±8.84 km[8] 28.55±0.36 km[9] |
| 10 h[10] 17.370±0.006h[11] | |
| 0.039±0.007[6] 0.0392±0.0045[7] 0.04±0.03[8] 0.042±0.001[9] 0.0536±0.011[5] 0.0701(derived)[3] 0.08±0.06[4] | |
| S[3] | |
| 11.33±1.36[12] · 11.8[7][9] · 11.90[8] · 11.95[4] · 12.0[1][3] · 12.30[5] | |
1516 Henry (provisional designation1938 BG) is a stonyasteroid from the middle region of theasteroid belt, approximately 20 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 28 January 1938, by French astronomerAndré Patry atNice Observatory in southeastern France.[13] It is named for French astronomers and opticians,Paul and Prosper Henry.[2]
TheS-type asteroid orbits the Sun in thecentral main-belt at a distance of 2.1–3.1 AU once every 4 years and 3 months (1,551 days). Its orbit has aneccentricity of 0.19 and aninclination of 9° with respect to theecliptic.[1] Noprecoveries were taken, and no prior identifications were made. Henry'sobservation arc starts at Nice in August 1939, or 19 months after its official discovery observation.[13]
In May 2005, a rotationallightcurve of Henry was obtained by French amateur astronomerChristophe Demeautis. It gave arotation period of 17.370 hours with a brightness variation of 0.54magnitude (U=2).[11] In February 2010, photometric observations byDavid Polishook and others at the CalifornianPalomar Transient Factory gave a divergent period of 10 hours with an amplitude of only 0.04 (U=2).[10]
According to the surveys carried out by the Infrared Astronomical SatelliteIRAS, the JapaneseAkari satellite, and NASA'sWide-field Infrared Survey Explorer with its subsequentNEOWISE mission, Henry measures between 19.19 and 28.55 kilometers in diameter, and its surface has analbedo between 0.039 and 0.070.[4][5][6][7][8][9] TheCollaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link derives an albedo of 0.0701 and a diameter of 19.98 kilometers with anabsolute magnitude of 12.0.[3]
Thisminor planet is named for the two brothersPaul Henry and Prosper Henry (1848–1905 and 1849–1903, respectively), who each discovered seven asteroids. As opticians, they constructed the 76-cm refracting telescope atNice Observatory, among others. While mapping the ecliptic during theirCarte du Ciel survey, they made all their fourteen, low-numbered asteroid discoveries, starting with125 Liberatrix.
The Henry Brothers are also honored by the lunar craterHenry Frères. The Martian craterHenry was named in honour of Paul.[2] The officialnaming citation was published by theMinor Planet Center on 1 April 1978 (M.P.C. 4358).[14]
