_Kaye.png) Shape model ofKaye from itslightcurve | |
| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | A. Mrkos |
| Discovery site | Kleť Obs. |
| Discovery date | 24 February 1987 |
| Designations | |
| (6546) Kaye | |
Named after | Danny Kaye (American actor and singer)[2] |
| 1987 DY4 · 1978 RF2 1991 XM1 | |
| Orbital characteristics[3] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 37.86 yr (13,828 days) |
| Aphelion | 3.5611AU |
| Perihelion | 2.8844 AU |
| 3.2228 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.1050 |
| 5.79yr (2,113 days) | |
| 80.178° | |
| 0° 10m 13.44s / day | |
| Inclination | 14.414° |
| 274.80° | |
| 272.41° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| 21.624±0.174 km[8] 23.21 km(calculated)[4] 23.757±0.186 km[9] | |
| 0.057(assumed)[4] 0.0656±0.0078[9] 0.085±0.015[8] | |
| C(assumed)[4] | |
| 11.7[9] · 11.9[1][4] · 11.986±0.003(R)[10] · 12.392±0.003(S)[10] | |
6546 Kaye (prov. designation:1987 DY4) is a dark and elongatedbackground asteroid from the outer region of theasteroid belt. It was discovered on 24 February 1987, by Czech astronomerAntonín Mrkos at the South BohemianKleť Observatory in the Czech Republic.[3] The presumedC-type asteroid has arotation period of 10.0 hours and measures approximately 22 kilometers (14 miles) in diameter. It was named for American actorDanny Kaye.[2]
When applying the synthetichierarchical clustering method (HCM) byNesvorný, or the 1995 HCM-analysis byZappalà,[6]Kaye is a non-family asteroid of the main belt'sbackground population,[5][6] while according to another HCM-analysis byMilani andKnežević (AstDyS),[7] it is a core member of theUrsula family (631), a family of 1,500 asteroids with aC- andX-type.[11]: 23
It orbits the Sun in theouter main-belt at a distance of 2.9–3.6 AU once every 5 years and 9 months (2,113 days). Its orbit has aneccentricity of 0.11 and aninclination of 14° with respect to theecliptic.[1] It was first observed as1978 RF2 atCrimea–Nauchnij in 1978, extending the body'sobservation arc by 9 years prior to its official discovery observation atKleť Observatory.[3]
Thisminor planet was named in memory of American actor and singerDavid Daniel Kaminsky (1911–1987), known by his screen name as "Danny Kaye".[2] Kaye starred in popular feature films such asThe Court Jester (1956), typically playing the role of a gentle bumbler who triumphs eventually. The minor planet's name was suggested by G. V. Williams, who made the identifications for this body.[2] Theapproved naming citation was published by theMinor Planet Center on 20 June 1997 (M.P.C. 30099).[12]
In August 2012, two rotationallightcurves ofKaye were obtained fromphotometric observations at thePalomar Transient Factory in California. Lightcurve analysis gave arotation period of10.0059±0.0569 and10.0186±0.0569 hours with a brightness variation of 0.32 and 0.34magnitude in the R and S-band, respectively (U=2/2).[4][10]
According to the survey carried out by NASA'sWide-field Infrared Survey Explorer with its subsequentNEOWISE mission,Kaye measures between 21.6 and 23.8 kilometers in diameter and its surface has analbedo between 0.065 and 0.085.[8][9] TheCollaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes a standard albedo forcarbonaceous asteroids of 0.057 and calculates a diameter of 23.2 kilometers with anabsolute magnitude of 11.9.[4]
