Abstract
Identified as possible flyby targets for the Galileo spacecraft, Asteroids 1219 Britta and 1972 Yi Xing became the focus of a coordinated observing program. Although a subsequent change in the launch date removed these asteroids from consideration for the Galileo mission, the ground-based observing program yielded a substantial amount of information on these previously unobserved asteroids. Britta's sideral rotation period is found to be 5.57497 ± 0.00013 hr and its rotation is retrograde. The lightcurve amplitude ranged from 0.60 to 0.70 mag, depending on phase angle. Britta can be classified as an S-type asteroids based on its measured spectra and albedo. The absolute magnitude and slope parameter derived from the lightcurve maxima are H0 = 11.67 ± 0.03 and G0 = 0.03 ± 0.04. A 0.002 mag deg-1 phase reddening in B·V was also measured. 1972 Yi Xing was less well observed but a unique synodic period of 14.183 ± 0.003 hr was determined. The observed lightcurve amplitude was 0.18 mag. Five-color measurements are consistent with an S-type classification. For an assumed slope parameter G = 0.25, Yi Xing's (lightcurve maximum) absolute magnitude H0 = 13.32 ± 0.01.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 148-158 |
Number of pages | 11 |
Journal | Icarus |
Volume | 71 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jul 1987 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Astronomy and Astrophysics
- Space and Planetary Science