An asteroid occultation occurs when an asteroid passes in front of a star (occults a star), temporarily blocking its light (as seen from Earth).[1] Several events occur nearly every day over the world. From any particular place such events occur almost every night, although most require a telescope to see.[2]
Asteroid occultations are useful for measuring the size and position of asteroids much more precisely than can be done by any other means. A cross-sectional profile of the shape of an asteroid can even be determined if a number of observers at different, nearby, locations observe the occultation. For example, on March 12, 2009 there were 8 minor planet occulations, including (85) Io, (247) Eukrate, (1585) Union, (201) Penelope, (70) Panopaea, (980) Anacostia, (2448) Sholokhov, (1746) Brouwer, and (191) Kolga. Any one of these would be expected to occult at a time and place on the globe, at a certain magnitude, and with a certain star.[2]
For example, according to the 1998 European Asteroidal Occultation Results from Euraster, 39 Laetitia was observed on by over 38 observatories in one occulation on 1998/03/21, which resulted many chords being determined.[3]
Occultations have produced outlines of many asteroids. Some notable ones include:
| Name | Chords | Dimensions Size (km) | Diameter (km) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 704 Interamnia | 35 | 350×304 | |
| 39 Laetitia | ~16 | 219×142 | 219.8 |
| 94 Aurora | 9 | 225×173 | |
| 375 Ursula | 6 | 216±10 | |
| 444 Gyptis | 6 | 179×150 | |
| 48 Doris | 4 | 278×142 |
Contents |
References
- ^ "Stellar Occultations". MIT Planetary Astronomy Lab. 2007-12-20. http://occult.mit.edu/research/stellarOccultations.php. Retrieved 2009-10-26.
- ^ a b Steve Preston. "Asteroid Occultation Updates". http://www.asteroidoccultation.com. Retrieved 2009-02-25.
- ^ "1998 European Asteroidal Occultation Results". euroster.net (a website for Asteroidal Occultation Observers in Europe). 1998-03-21. http://www.euraster.net/results/1998/index.html#0321-39. Retrieved 2008-12-01. (Chords)
External links
Wiki
Web
- asteroidoccultation.com/ Asteroid Occultation Updates
- Occultations by asteroids (Good visual aid of an occultation of a star by Phoebe)
- Society for Popular Astronomy (Asteroidal Occultations for the UK)
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