Discovery | |
---|---|
Discovered by | G. Schiaparelli |
Discovery date | April 29, 1861[1] |
Designations | |
(69) Hesperia | |
Pronunciation | /hɛˈspɪəriə/[2] |
Named after | Hesperia |
Main belt | |
Adjectives | Hesperian /hɛˈspɪəriən/[3] |
Orbital characteristics | |
Epoch (absent) | |
Aphelion | 3.471 AU (519.3 Gm) |
Perihelion | 2.489 AU (372.3 Gm) |
2.980 AU (445.8 Gm) | |
Eccentricity | 0.165 |
1,879 days (5.14 a) | |
Inclination | 8.59° |
184.99° | |
288.8° | |
Physical characteristics | |
Dimensions | 138 km (IRAS)[4] 110 ± 15 km[5] |
Mass | (5.86±1.18)×1018 kg[6] |
Mean density | 4.38±0.99 g/cm3[6] |
5.655 h[4] | |
0.140[4] | |
M | |
7.05[4] | |
69 Hesperia is a large, M-type main-belt asteroid. It was discovered by the Italian astronomer Giovanni Schiaparelli on April 29, 1861[1] from Milan, while he was searching for the recently discovered 63 Ausonia.[7] It was his only asteroid discovery. Schiaparelli named it Hesperia in honour of Italy (the word is a Greek term for the peninsula).[8] The asteroid is orbiting the Sun with a period of 5.14 years, a semimajor axis of 2.980 AU, and eccentricity of 0.165. The orbital plane is inclined by an angle of 8.59° to the plane of the ecliptic.
Hesperia was observed by Arecibo radar in February 2010.[5] Radar observations combined with lightcurve-based shape models, lead to a diameter estimate of 110 ± 15 km (68 ± 9.3 mi). The radar albedo is consistent with a high-metal M-type asteroid.[5] In the near infrared, a weak absorption feature near a wavelength of 0.9 μm can be attributed to orthopyroxenes on the surface.[9] A meteorite analogue of the reflectance spectra from 69 Hesperia is the Hoba ataxite.[10]
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