40 Harmonia

40 Harmonia
A three-dimensional model of 40 Harmonia based on its light curve
Discovery
Discovered byH. Goldschmidt
Discovery dateMarch 31, 1856
Designations
(40) Harmonia
Pronunciation/hɑːrˈmoʊniə/[1]
Named after
Harmonia
1950 XU
Main belt
Orbital characteristics[2]
Epoch December 31, 2006 (JD 2454100.5)
Aphelion355.021 Gm (2.373 AU)
Perihelion323.537 Gm (2.163 AU)
339.279 Gm (2.268 AU)
Eccentricity0.046
1,247.514 d (3.42 a)
249.120°
Inclination4.256°
94.287°
268.988°
Physical characteristics
Dimensions111.251 ± 0.391 km[2]
Mass(2.206 ± 0.612/0.42)×1018 kg[3]
Mean density
2.867 ± 0.795/0.546 g/cm3[3][a]
0.3712 d (8.909 h)[4]
0.242[5]
S
9.31 (brightest)
6.55[2]

40 Harmonia is a large main-belt asteroid. It was discovered by German-French astronomer Hermann Goldschmidt on March 31, 1856,[6] and named after Harmonia, the Greek goddess of harmony. The name was chosen to mark the end of the Crimean War.

The asteroid is orbiting the Sun with a period of 3.42 years and a relatively low eccentricity of 0.046. It has a cross-sectional size of 107.6 km. The spectrum of 40 Harmonia matches an S-type (silicate) in the Tholen classification system, and is similar to primitive achondrite meteorites.[7] Photometric observations at the Organ Mesa Observatory in Las Cruces, New Mexico during 2008–09 were used to generate a light curve that showed four unequal minima and maxima per cycle. The curve shows a period of 8.909 ± 0.001 hours with a brightness variation of 0.28 ± 0.02 in magnitude. This result is compatible with previous studies.[4]

Speckle interferometric observations carried out with the Nicholas U. Mayall Telescope at the Kitt Peak National Observatory during 1982–84 failed to discover a satellite companion.[8] In 1988 a search for satellites or dust orbiting this asteroid was performed using the UH88 telescope at the Mauna Kea Observatories, but the effort came up empty.[9]

  1. ^ Noah Webster (1884) A Practical Dictionary of the English Language
  2. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference JPL was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference FiengaEtAl2020 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Pilcher2009 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference ADA was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference IAU_MPC was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference Hiroi1993 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference Roberts1995 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference Gradie1988 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).


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