1727 Mette, provisional designation1965 BA, is abinary[a] Hungariaasteroid andMars-crosser from the inner regions of theasteroid belt, approximately 9 kilometers in diameter.
TheS-type asteroid is a member of theHungaria family, which form the innermost dense concentration of asteroids in the Solar System. It is also aMars-crossing asteroid, a dynamically unstable group between the main belt and thenear-Earth populations.
It orbits the Sun in theinner main-belt at a distance of 1.7–2.0 AU once every 2 years and 6 months (922 days). Its orbit has aneccentricity of 0.10 and aninclination of 23° with respect to theecliptic.[1] Being a Mars-crosser,Mette will make a relatively close approach to Mars on April 15, 2023, when it will pass near the Red Planet at a distance of less than 0.08 AU (12,000,000 km).[1] It was first identified as1955 DC atGoethe Link Observatory in 1955, extending the body'sobservation arc by 10 years prior to its official discovery observation.[3]
A large number of rotationallightcurves ofMette were obtained from photometric observations. They gave arotation period of approximately 2.981 hours (best rated results) with a brightness variation between 0.22 and 0.38magnitude, indicating a moderately elongated body (U=3/3/3).[9][10][14][15] TheCollaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes a standard albedo for stony asteroids of 0.20 and calculates a diameter of 8.97 kilometers,[4] while observations with theWide-field Infrared Survey Explorer gave a diameter of 5.44 kilometers and an albedo of 0.544.[5]
Thisminor planet was named by the discoverer after his wife, Mette Andrews for her comprehension of his nocturnal working hours and absence from home.[2] The approved naming citation was published by theMinor Planet Center on 1 February 1980 (M.P.C. 5183).[19]
^abcCentral Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams (No.3402), 5 February 2013 for (1727) METTE: "CCD photometric observations made between Jan. 17 and 21 show that minor planet (1727) Mette is a binary system with an orbital period of 21.05 +/- 0.03 hr. The light-curve of the primary has a period of 2.98091 +/- 0.00009 hr with an amplitudeof 0.33 +/- 0.01 mag, indicating a moderately elongated body. Assuming a triaxial ellipsoidal shape and equatorial view, this gives an a/b ratio of 1.36 +/- 0.02. This makes the object unusual in that the primaries of most small binary systems are nearly spheroidal. The depth of the events ranges from 0.04 to 0.07 mag. The depth of the secondary event gives a lower limit for the effective secondary-to-primary diameter ratio of Ds/Dp = 0.20 +/- 0.02. A general "bowing" of the secondary period light curve (amplitude 0.01–0.02 mag) indicates that the satellite is probably tidally-locked to the orbital period." —Reported by B. D. Warner, Palmer Divide Observatory, Colorado Springs, CO, USA; R. D. Stephens, Center for Solar System Studies, Landers, CA, USA; and A. W. Harris, MoreData!, La Canada, CA, USA.
^abWarner, B. D.; Stephens, R. D.; Harris, A. W. (February 2013)."(1727) Mette".Central Bureau Electronic Telegrams.3402 (3402): 1.Bibcode:2013CBET.3402....1W. Retrieved21 December 2016.
