14974 Počátky, provisional designation 1997 SK1, is a stony background asteroid from the middle region of the asteroid belt, approximately 4 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered by Czech astronomer Miloš Tichý at Kleť Observatory in the Czech Republic on 22 September 1997, and named for the Czech town Počátky.[8]
| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | M. Tichý |
| Discovery site | Kleť Obs. |
| Discovery date | 22 September 1997 |
| Designations | |
| (14974) Počátky | |
Named after | Počátky (Czech town)[2] |
| 1997 SK1 · 1991 FF2 | |
| main-belt · (middle)[3] background | |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 26.13 yr (9,543 days) |
| Aphelion | 2.8575 AU |
| Perihelion | 2.4047 AU |
| 2.6311 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.0860 |
| 4.27 yr (1,559 days) | |
| 100.11° | |
| 0° 13m 51.24s / day | |
| Inclination | 3.8704° |
| 338.42° | |
| 158.25° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 4.040±0.831 km[4][5] 4.88 km (calculated)[3] |
| 21.7079±0.0320 h[6] 21.7277±0.0320 h[6] | |
| 0.10 (assumed)[3] 0.226±0.100[4][5] | |
| S[3] | |
| 14.2[1][4] · 14.225±0.009 (R)[6] · 14.226±0.005 (R)[6] · 14.43±0.19[7] · 14.67[3] | |
Classification and orbit
Počátky is a stony S-type asteroid, that orbits the Sun in the middle main-belt at a distance of 2.4–2.9 AU once every 4 years and 3 months (1,559 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.09 and an inclination of 4° with respect to the ecliptic.[1] A first precovery was taken at ESO's La Silla Observatory in 1991, extending the asteroid's observation arc by 6 years prior to its discovery.[8]
Physical characteristics
Two rotational lightcurves for this asteroid were obtained from photometric observations made at the U.S Palomar Transient Factory, California, in August 2010 and February 2012. The lightcurves gave a rotation period of 21.7277±0.0320 and 21.7079±0.0320 hours with a brightness amplitude of 0.57 and 0.68 in magnitude, respectively (U=2/2).[6]
According to the survey carried out by the NEOWISE mission of NASA's space-based Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, Počátky measures 4.0 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo of 0.23,[4][5] while the Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link (CALL) assumes an untypically low albedo for stony asteroids of 0.10, and thus calculates a larger diameter of 4.9 kilometers.[3]
Naming
This minor planet was named after the south Bohemian town of Počátky, Czech Republic. It is the birthplace of the discoverer Miloš Tichý.[2] The approved naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 11 November 2000 (M.P.C. 41572).[9]
References
External links
- Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB), query form (info Archived 16 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine)
- Dictionary of Minor Planet Names, Google books
- Asteroids and comets rotation curves, CdR – Observatoire de Genève, Raoul Behrend
- Discovery Circumstances: Numbered Minor Planets (10001)-(15000) – Minor Planet Center
- 14974 Počátky at AstDyS-2, Asteroids—Dynamic Site
- 14974 Počátky at the JPL Small-Body Database
