| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | L. Zhuravleva |
| Discovery site | Crimean Astrophysical Obs. |
| Discovery date | 4 September 1972 |
| Designations | |
| (1909) Alekhin | |
Named after | Alexander Alekhine (chess grandmaster)[2] |
| 1972 RW2 · 1926 GU 1930 KF · 1930 KM 1934 NZ · 1934 OC 1941 FJ · 1960 FD 1969 UU · 1971 DL | |
| main-belt · (inner)[3] | |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 91.06 yr (33,259 days) |
| Aphelion | 2.9693AU |
| Perihelion | 1.8758 AU |
| 2.4226 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.2257 |
| 3.77yr (1,377 days) | |
| 53.882° | |
| 0° 15m 41.04s / day | |
| Inclination | 1.7955° |
| 227.46° | |
| 5.6412° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 15.45±9.22 km[4] 17.33 km(derived)[3] 17.42±1.5 km(IRAS:15)[5] 18.59±0.37 km[6] 18.681±0.043[7] 18.847±0.129 km[8] |
| 148.2252±0.6228 h[9] 148.6±0.2h[10] | |
| 0.0446(derived)[3] 0.0460±0.0018[8] 0.060±0.004[7] 0.062±0.003[6] 0.067±0.083[4] 0.0700±0.014(IRAS:15)[5] | |
| S[3] | |
| 12.30[6][8] · 12.44±0.32[11] · 12.60[4] · 12.646±0.003(R)[9] · 12.8[1][3] · 12.9[12] · 12.91±0.07[10] | |
1909 Alekhin, provisional designation1972 RW2, is a stonyasteroid andslow rotator from the inner regions of theasteroid belt, approximately 17 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 4 September 1972, by Russian–Ukrainian astronomerLyudmila Zhuravleva at theCrimean Astrophysical Observatory, Nauchnyj, on the Crimean peninsula, and named after chess grandmaster and World Chess ChampionAlexander Alekhine.[2][13]
TheS-type asteroid orbits the Sun in theinner main-belt at a distance of 1.9–3.0 AU once every 3 years and 9 months (1,377 days). Its orbit has aneccentricity of 0.23 and aninclination of 2° with respect to theecliptic.[1]
Alekhin is aslow rotator. In March 2009 and September 2010, two rotationallightcurves forAlekhin were obtained from photometric observations made by thePalomar Transient Factory and by astronomer Roger Dymock, respectively. The lightcurves gave arotation period of 148 hours with a brightness variation of 0.42–0.45magnitude (U=2/3).[9][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,Alekhin measures between 15.5 and 18.8 kilometers in diameter and its surface has analbedo of 0.046 to 0.070.[4][5][6][7][8] TheCollaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link derives an albedo of 0.045 and a diameter of 17.3 kilometers with anabsolute magnitude of 12.8.[3]
Alekhin is scheduled to occlude a 9.1 magnitude star in theLeo constellation on 30 November 2008, dimming the magnitude of both heavenly bodies for a maximum duration of 0.6 seconds.Astronomers had, as of March 2008, not predicted an optimal trajectory for the event.[14]
This minor planet was named in honour of Russian-bornAlexander Alekhine (1892–1946),chess grandmaster, considered one of the greatest chess players ever.[2] The officialnaming citation was published by theMinor Planet Center on 20 February 1976 (M.P.C. 3937).[15]
