146 Lucina
Lucina (minor planet designation: 146 Lucina) is a main-belt asteroid that was discovered by Alphonse Borrelly on June 8, 1875, and named after Lucina, the Roman goddess of childbirth. It is large, dark and has a carbonaceous composition. The spectra of the asteroid displays evidence of aqueous alteration.
A three-dimensional model of 146 Lucina based on its light curve. | |
| Discovery | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Alphonse Borrelly |
| Discovery date | 8 June 1875 |
| Designations | |
MPC designation | (146) Lucina |
| Pronunciation | /luːˈsaɪnə/ or as Latin Lūcīna |
Alternative designations | A875 LC; 1950 CY |
Minor planet category | Main belt |
| Orbital characteristics | |
| Epoch 31 July 2016 (JD 2457600.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 130.35 yr (47610 d) |
| Aphelion | 2.89945 AU (433.752 Gm) |
| Perihelion | 2.53641 AU (379.442 Gm) |
Semi-major axis | 2.71793 AU (406.597 Gm) |
| Eccentricity | 0.066786 |
Orbital period (sidereal) | 4.48 yr (1636.6 d) |
Average orbital speed | 18.04 km/s |
Mean anomaly | 198.102° |
Mean motion | 0° 13m 11.863s / day |
| Inclination | 13.0947° |
Longitude of ascending node | 83.9692° |
| 146.982° | |
| Earth MOID | 1.53233 AU (229.233 Gm) |
| Jupiter MOID | 2.14062 AU (320.232 Gm) |
| TJupiter | 3.319 |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 132.21±2.4 km 131.893 km |
| Mass | 2.4×1018 kg |
Mean density | 2.0 g/cm3 |
Equatorial surface gravity | 0.0369 m/s² |
Equatorial escape velocity | 0.0699 km/s |
Synodic rotation period | 18.557 h (0.7732 d) |
| 0.0531±0.002 0.0496 ± 0.0107 | |
| Temperature | ~169 K |
| C (Tholen) | |
| 8.20, 8.277 | |
Photometric observations of this asteroid made during 1979 and 1981 gave a light curve with a period of 18.54 hours.
Two stellar occultations by Lucina have been observed so far, in 1982 and 1989. During the first event, a possible small satellite with an estimated 5.7 km diameter was detected at a distance of 1,600 km from 146 Lucina. A 1992 search using a CCD failed to discover a satellite larger than 0.6 km, although it may have been obscured by occultation mask. Further evidence for a satellite emerged in 2003, this time based on astrometric measurements.