 Hubble Space Telescope image ofElatus taken in 2009 | |
| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Catalina Sky Srvy. |
| Discovery site | Mount Lemmon Obs. |
| Discovery date | 29 October 1999 |
| Designations | |
| (31824) Elatus | |
| Pronunciation | /ˈɛlətəs/[2] |
Named after | Elatus[3](Greek mythology) |
| 1999 UG5 | |
| centaur[1][4] · distant[5] | |
| Symbol | .svg) or.svg){kind=icon} (astrological) |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 2 | |
| Observation arc | 10.58 yr (3,864 days) |
| Aphelion | 16.298AU |
| Perihelion | 7.3239 AU |
| 11.811 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.3799 |
| 40.59yr (14,826 days) | |
| 170.74° | |
| 0° 1m 27.48s / day | |
| Inclination | 5.2447° |
| 87.158° | |
| 281.62° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| 45.87 km(derived)[4] 49.8±10.4 km[6] 57.000±15.900 km[7] | |
| 26.5 h[8] 26.82 h[9] | |
| 0.049±0.028[6] 0.050±0.028[7] 0.057(assumed)[4] | |
| RR[10] B–V =1.020±0.060[11] V–R =0.620±0.048[11] | |
| 10.1[1] · 10.32[9] · 10.40±0.09[6] · 10.42[8][4] · 10.439±0.107(R)[12] · 10.49[13] · 10.61[14] | |
31824 Elatus (/ˈɛlətəs/;provisional designation1999 UG5) is a very redcentaur from theouter Solar System, approximately 48 kilometers (30 miles) in diameter. It was discovered on 29 October 1999, by astronomers of theCatalina Sky Survey atMount Lemmon Observatory in Arizona, United States.[5] Theminor planet was named afterElatus, acentaur fromGreek mythology.[3]
Elatus orbits the Sun at a distance of 7.3–16.3 AU once every 40 years and 7 months (14,826 days). Its orbit has aneccentricity of 0.38 and aninclination of 5° with respect to theecliptic.[1]
The body'sobservation arc begins with aprecovery taken by theSloan Digital Sky Survey atApache Point Observatory in September 1998, thirteen months prior to its official discovery observation.[5]
Thisminor planet was named afterElatus, acentaur fromGreek mythology, who was killed during a battle with Heracles(also see5143 Heracles) by a poisoned arrow that passed through his arm and continued to wound Chiron in the knee(also see2060 Chiron). The name "Elatus" means "fir man" and is associated with woodlands.[3] The officialnaming citation was published by theMinor Planet Center on 14 June 2003 (M.P.C. 49102).[15]
Two rotationallightcurves of Elatus were obtained fromphotometric observations. Lightcurve analysis gave a longer-than-averagerotation period of 26.5 and 26.82 hours with a concurring brightness variation of 0.10magnitude (U=2/2).[8][9]
According to observations by ESA'sHerschel Space Observatory with itsPACS instrument and the survey carried out by theNEOWISE mission of NASA'sWide-field Infrared Survey Explorer Elatus measures 49.8 and 57.000 kilometers in diameter and its surface has analbedo of 0.049 and 0.050, respectively.[6][7] TheCollaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes a standard albedo for carbonaceous minor planets of 0.057 and derives a diameter of 45.87 kilometers based on anabsolute magnitude of 10.42.[4]
