| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | N. Chernykh |
| Discovery site | Crimean Astrophysical Obs. |
| Discovery date | 15 May 1977 |
| Designations | |
| (2862) Vavilov | |
Named after | Nikolai Vavilovand Sergey Ivanovich Vavilov (Russian scientists)[2] |
| 1977 JP · 1931 DY 1972 VF1 · 1978 SV2 | |
| main-belt · (inner) Flora[3] · background[4][5] | |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 86.60 yr (31,631 days) |
| Aphelion | 2.4532AU |
| Perihelion | 1.9490 AU |
| 2.2011 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.1145 |
| 3.27yr (1,193 days) | |
| 194.09° | |
| 0° 18m 6.48s / day | |
| Inclination | 3.4849° |
| 225.83° | |
| 278.04° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 6.031±0.681 km[6][7] 6.44±0.57 km[8] 7.82 km(calculated)[3] 7.95±1.41 km[9] |
| 800h[a] | |
| 0.21±0.12[9] 0.24(assumed)[3] 0.323±0.059[8] 0.4039±0.0762[7] 0.404±0.076[6] | |
| S(assumed)[3] | |
| 12.7[3][7] · 12.78±0.66[10] · 12.80[1][8] · 13.11[9] | |
2862 Vavilov, provisional designation1977 JP, is a stony backgroundasteroid and exceptionallyslow rotator from the inner regions of theasteroid belt, approximately 7 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 15 May 1977, by Soviet astronomerNikolai Chernykh at theCrimean Astrophysical Observatory in Nauchnij, on the Crimean peninsula.[11] The asteroid was named after Russian plant geneticistNikolai Vavilov and his physicist brotherSergey Ivanovich Vavilov.[2]
Vavilov is located in the dynamical region of theFlora family (402), a giantasteroid family and the largest family of stony asteroids in the main-belt.[3] However, it is a non-family asteroid of the main belt'sbackground population when applying thehierarchical clustering method to itsproper orbital elements.[4][5]
It orbits the Sun in theinner main-belt at a distance of 1.9–2.5 AU once every 3 years and 3 months (1,193 days). Its orbit has aneccentricity of 0.11 and aninclination of 3° with respect to theecliptic.[1]
The body'sobservation arc begins with its first identification as1931 DY atLowell Observatory in February 1931, more than 46 years prior to its official discovery observation at Nauchnij.[11]
Vavilov is an assumed stonyS-type asteroid,[3] which is also the overallspectral type for members of the Flora family.
In February 2006, a rotationallightcurve ofVavilov was obtained from photometric observations byPetr Pravec atOndřejov Observatory in the Czech Republic. Lightcurve analysis gave arotation period of 800 hours with a brightness amplitude of at least 0.4magnitude (U=2)[a]
With aperiod above 500 hours,Vavilov is one of only a few dozenslow rotators with such an extreme spin rate currently known to exists.
According to the surveys carried out by the JapaneseAkari satellite and theNEOWISE mission of NASA'sWide-field Infrared Survey Explorer,Vavilov measures between 6.031 and 7.95 kilometers in diameter and its surface has analbedo between 0.21 and 0.404.[6][7][8][9]
TheCollaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes an albedo of 0.24 – derived from8 Flora, the Flora family's parent body – and calculates a diameter of 7.82 kilometers based on anabsolute magnitude of 12.7.[3]
Thisminor planet was named in memory of Russian plant geneticistNikolai Vavilov (1887–1943) and his physicist brotherSergey Ivanovich Vavilov (1891-1951).[2] The official naming citation was published by theMinor Planet Center on 18 September 1986 (M.P.C. 11157).[12] The lunar craterVavilov was also named in their honor.[2]
