3412 Kafka

3412 Kafka, provisional designation 1983 AU2, is an asteroid from the inner regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 6 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 10 January 1983, by American astronomers Randolph Kirk and Donald Rudy at Palomar Observatory in California, United States.[4][5] The asteroid was named after writer Franz Kafka.[2]

3412 Kafka
Discovery [1]
Discovered byR. Kirk
D. Rudy
Discovery sitePalomar Obs.
Discovery date10 January 1983
Designations
(3412) Kafka
Named after
Franz Kafka
(Austrian–Czech writer)[2]
1983 AU2 · 1942 YB
1977 FF3 · 1978 PA2
1978 QE1
main-belt · Flora
Orbital characteristics [1]
Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Observation arc74.42 yr (27,182 days)
Aphelion2.4565 AU
Perihelion1.9925 AU
2.2245 AU
Eccentricity0.1043
3.32 yr (1,212 days)
194.88°
Inclination2.9731°
307.60°
117.70°
Physical characteristics
Dimensions6.084±0.080 km[3]
0.231±0.076[3]
13.4[1]

    Orbit and classification

    Kafka orbits the Sun in the inner main-belt at a distance of 2.0–2.5 AU once every 3 years and 4 months (1,212 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.10 and an inclination of 3° with respect to the ecliptic.[1] It was first identified as 1942 YB at the Finnish Turku Observatory in 1942, extending the body's observation arc by 41 years prior to its official discovery observation at Palomar.[4]

    Physical characteristics

    According to the survey carried out by NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer with its subsequent NEOWISE mission, Kafka measures 6.1 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo of 0.231.[3] As of 2017, its rotation period and shape remain unknown.[1][6]

    Naming

    This minor planet was named after Franz Kafka (1883–1924), Austrian–Czech writer of novels and short stories, in which protagonists are faced with bizarre or surrealistic situations.[2] The approved naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 13 February 1987 (M.P.C. 11641).[7]

    References
    1. "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 3412 Kafka (1983 AU2)" (2017-06-02 last obs.). Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 17 June 2017.
    2. Schmadel, Lutz D. (2007). "(3412) Kafka". Dictionary of Minor Planet Names – (3412) Kafka. Springer Berlin Heidelberg. p. 284. doi:10.1007/978-3-540-29925-7_3412. ISBN 978-3-540-00238-3.
    3. Masiero, Joseph R.; Grav, T.; Mainzer, A. K.; Nugent, C. R.; Bauer, J. M.; Stevenson, R.; et al. (August 2014). "Main-belt Asteroids with WISE/NEOWISE: Near-infrared Albedos". The Astrophysical Journal. 791 (2): 11. arXiv:1406.6645. Bibcode:2014ApJ...791..121M. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/791/2/121.
    4. "3412 Kafka (1983 AU2)". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 5 December 2016.
    5. Edberg & Levy 1994, p. 80.
    6. "LCDB Data for (3412) Kafka". Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB). Retrieved 17 June 2017.
    7. "MPC/MPO/MPS Archive". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 5 December 2016.


    Bibliography
    • Edberg, Stephen J.; Levy, David H. (1994). Observing, Comets, Asteroids, Meteors, and the Zodiacal Light. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-42003-7.
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