65803 Didymos

For other uses, see Didymos.

65803 Didymos
Didymos (bottom left) and Dimorphos (top right) photographed by the DART space probe
Discovery [1]
Discovered bySpacewatch
Discovery siteKitt Peak National Observatory
Discovery date11 April 1996
Designations
(65803) Didymos
Pronunciation/ˈdɪdɪmɒs/[2]
Named after
Greek word for "Twin"[3]
1996 GT
NEO · PHA
Apollo (2022) [1][a]
Orbital characteristics [1]
Epoch 21 January 2022 (JD 2459600.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Observation arc24.82 years (9,066 days)
Aphelion2.2753 AU
Perihelion1.0131 AU
1.6442 AU
Eccentricity0.38385
2.11 yr (770 days)
232.01
0° 28m 2.28s / day
Inclination3.4079°
73.196°
319.32°
Known satellites1 (Dimorphos)
Earth MOID0.0403 AU (15.7 LD)
Mars MOID0.02 AU (7.8 LD)[4]
Physical characteristics[5]
Dimensions851 × 849 × 620 m
(± 15 × 15 × 15 m)
765±15 m[b]
Mass(5.4±0.4)×1011 kg (system)[6]
≈ 5.2×1011 kg (primary)[7]
Mean density
2.40±0.30 g/cm3[5]
2.2600±0.0001[6]
2.2593±0.0002 h[8]
174°±20°[c]
−84°±20°
310°±20°
0.15±0.04
S[6][10] · SMASS = Xk[1] · X[11]
18.0[1] · 18.16[11][8][12]
18.16±0.03[13]

65803 Didymos (provisional designation 1996 GT) is a sub-kilometer asteroid and binary system that is classified as a potentially hazardous asteroid and near-Earth object of the Apollo group.[a] The asteroid was discovered in 1996 by the Spacewatch survey at Kitt Peak, and its small 160-meter minor-planet moon, named Dimorphos, was discovered in 2003. Due to its binary nature, the asteroid was then named Didymos, the Greek word for 'twin'.

Didymos's moon, Dimorphos, was the target of the DART mission to test the viability of asteroid impact avoidance by collision with a spacecraft, while the impact was witnessed by LICIACube, a flyby CubeSat component of the mission.

  1. ^ a b c d e Cite error: The named reference jpldata was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "didymous". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference springer was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference MPC-Didymos was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference Cheng2023 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ a b c d Cite error: The named reference Naidu2020 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference Nakano2022 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Pravec-2006 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference coordstransform was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference Scheirich2022 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference lcdb was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference Kitazato-2004 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference Pravec-2012b was invoked but never defined (see the help page).


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