| Discovery [1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Farra d'Isonzo Obs. (inc. Luciano Bittesini) |
| Discovery site | Farra d'Isonzo Obs. |
| Discovery date | 30 March 1994 |
| Designations | |
| (8549) Alcide | |
Named after | Alcide Bittesini (father of co-discoverer)[2] |
| 1994 FS | |
| main-belt · Nysa [3] | |
| Orbital characteristics [1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 23.31 yr (8,514 days) |
| Aphelion | 2.8912AU |
| Perihelion | 1.9828 AU |
| 2.4370 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.1864 |
| 3.80yr (1,390 days) | |
| 318.71° | |
| 0° 15m 32.76s / day | |
| Inclination | 1.8790° |
| 205.61° | |
| 64.719° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 4.19 km(calculated)[3] 4.341±0.076 km[4][5] |
| 3h[6] | |
| 0.196±0.012[4][5] 0.21(assumed)[3] | |
| S [3] | |
| 14.2[1][3][4] · 14.3±0.4(R)[6] · 14.73±0.25[7] | |
8549 Alcide, provisional designation1994 FS, is a stony Nysaasteroid from the inner regions of theasteroid belt, approximately 4.2 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 30 March 1994, by a group of amateur astronomers at theFarra d'Isonzo Observatory, Italy, near the border to Slovenia.[8] It was named for Alcide Bittesini, father of co-discovererLuciano Bittesini.[2]
Alcide is a member of the stony subgroup of theNysa family, one of the smaller families in the main-belt, named after its namesake,44 Nysa. The body orbits the Sun in theinner main-belt at a distance of 2.0–2.9 AU once every 3 years and 10 months (1,390 days). Its orbit has aneccentricity of 0.19 and aninclination of 2° with respect to theecliptic.[1]Precoveries were taken atPalomar andSteward Observatory (Kitt Peak) just weeks and days prior to the asteroid's official discovery observation at Farra d'Isonzo.[8]
A rotationallightcurve ofAlcide was obtained from photometric observations made by astronomer David Polishook at the ground-basedWise Observatory, Israel, in November 2007. The lightcurve gave arotation period of3 hours with a brightness amplitude of 0.2magnitude (U=2-).[6]
According to the survey carried out by theNEOWISE mission of NASA's space-basedWide-field Infrared Survey Explorer,Alcide measures 4.3 kilometers in diameter and its surface has analbedo of 0.195,[4][5] while theCollaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes a standard albedo forstony asteroids of 0.21 and calculates a diameter of 4.2 kilometers with anabsolute magnitude of 14.2.[3]
Thisminor planet was named for Italian high-school teacher of natural sciences, Alcide Bittesini (1913–1981). He was the father of amateur astronomer Luciano Bittesini, who co-discovered the asteroid with his amateur colleagues at theFarra d'Isonzo Observatory in Italy.[2]
At the age of 9, his father fostered his interest in astronomy, when they observed a comet with a homespun telescope made of a pair of glasses, a tin can and a microscope eyepiece.[2] The official naming citation was published by theMinor Planet Center on 2 February 1999 (M.P.C. 33791).[9]
