341 California

341 California

Shape model of California
Discovery
Discovered by	Max Wolf
Discovery site	Heidelberg Obs.
Discovery date	25 September 1892
Designations
MPC designation	(341) California
Named after	California
Alternative designations	1892 J; 1979 FY2
Minor planet category	Main belt
Orbital characteristics [1]
Epoch 31 July 2016 (JD 2457600.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Observation arc	113.45 yr (41,439 d)
Aphelion	2.62698 AU (392.991 Gm)
Perihelion	1.77187 AU (265.068 Gm)
Semi-major axis	2.19943 AU (329.030 Gm)
Eccentricity	0.19439
Orbital period (sidereal)	3.26 yr (1,191.4 d)
Mean anomaly	15.6325°
Mean motion	0° 18^m 7.783^s / day
Inclination	5.66900°
Longitude of ascending node	29.0469°
Argument of perihelion	293.875°
Physical characteristics
Dimensions	14.67±0.9 km [1] 15 km [2]
Mean density	~2.7 g/cm^3[3]
Synodic rotation period	317.88 h (13.25 d)
Geometric albedo	0.4950±0.064 [1] 0.495 [2]
Spectral type	S [4]
Asteroid family	Flora family
Absolute magnitude (H)	10.55

341 California is an asteroid belonging to the Flora family in the Main Belt. It was discovered by Max Wolf on 25 September 1892 in Heidelberg, and is named for the U.S. state of California.[5] This object is orbiting the Sun at a distance of 2.20 AU with a period of 3.26 yr and an eccentricity (ovalness) of 0.19. The orbital plane is inclined at an angle of 5.7° to the plane of the ecliptic.[1]

The very slow rotation rate of this asteroid favors collecting photometric data for an extended period in order to measure the period. Data collected from June to December 2016 was used to produce a light curve showing a rotation period of 317.88±0.06 h with a brightness variation of 0.9 in magnitude. It is tumbling with a period of 250±2 h.[6] It has an unusually high albedo.

References

1. "341 California (1892 J)". JPL Small-Body Database. NASA/Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 11 May 2016.
2. "Supplemental IRAS Minor Planet Survey". Planetary Data System. Planetary Science Institute. 23 June 2006. Archived from the original on 23 June 2006. Retrieved 15 May 2006.
3. Krasinsky, G. A.; et al. (2002). "Hidden Mass in the Asteroid Belt". Icarus. 158: 98–105. Bibcode:2002Icar..158...98K. doi:10.1006/icar.2002.6837.
4. PDS spectral class data
5. Peebles, Curtis (2016), Asteroids: a History, Smithsonian, p. 159, ISBN 9781944466046
6. Pilcher, Frederick; Franco, Lorenzo; Pravec, Petr (April 2017), "319 Leona and 341 California - Two Very Slowly Rotating Asteroids", Bulletin of the Minor Planets Section of the Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers, 44 (2): 87–90, Bibcode:2017MPBu...44...87P.

External links

• 341 California at AstDyS-2, Asteroids—Dynamic Site
  • Ephemeris · Observation prediction · Orbital info · Proper elements · Observational info
• 341 California at the JPL Small-Body Database
  • Close approach · Discovery · Ephemeris · Orbit viewer · Orbit parameters · Physical parameters