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2956 Yeomans, provisional designation 1982 HN₁, is a stony asteroid from the central regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 10 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 28 April 1982, by astronomer Edward Bowell at the Anderson Mesa Station of the Lowell Observatory in near Flagstaff, Arizona. It was named after American astronomer Donald Keith Yeomans.

Orbit and classification

Yeomans is a non-family asteroid from the asteroid belt's background population. It orbits the Sun in the central main-belt at a distance of 2.5–3.0 AU once every 4 years and 7 months (1,679 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.09 and an inclination of 3° with respect to the ecliptic.

The asteroid was first identified as 1950 JG at the Johannesburg Observatory in May 1950. The body's observation arc begins with its identification as 1974 RN₁ at Crimea–Nauchnij in September 1974, almost 8 years prior to its official discovery observation at Anderson Mesa.

Physical characteristics

In the SMASS classification, Yeomans is an Sr-subtype that transitions from the stony S-types to the uncommon R-type asteroids.

Rotation period

In April 2014, a rotational lightcurve of Yeomans was obtained from photometric observations made at the Isaac Aznar Observatory in Spain. Lightcurve analysis gave a rotation period of 3.4 hours with a brightness variation of 0.28 magnitude (U=2). A similar period of 3.509 hours with an amplitude of 0.24 magnitude was found by astronomers at the Palomar Transient Factory in October 2011 (U=2).

Diameter and albedo

According to the survey carried out by the NEOWISE mission of NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, Yeomans measures 9.350 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo of 0.292. The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes a standard albedo for stony asteroids of 0.20 and derives a diameter of 11.30 kilometers based on an absolute magnitude of 12.1.

Naming

This minor planet was named after American astronomer Donald Keith Yeomans, a celestial mechanician at JPL and astrometry-expert of the International Halley Watch. The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 18 September 1986 (M.P.C. 11158).

In popular culture

• In the 1995 Sliders first-season episode "Last Days", asteroid 2956 Yeomans (misspelled Yeoman in the episode) was the asteroid responsible for almost destroying the Earth by impact.

References

1. ^ "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 2956 Yeomans (1982 HN1)" (2017-02-24 last obs.). Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Archived from the original on 14 September 2020. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
2. ^ Schmadel, Lutz D. (2007). "(2956) Yeomans". Dictionary of Minor Planet Names – (2956) Yeomans. Springer Berlin Heidelberg. p. 243. doi:10.1007/978-3-540-29925-7_2957. ISBN 978-3-540-00238-3.
3. ^ "LCDB Data for (2956) Yeomans". Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB). Retrieved 13 September 2017.
4. ^ Masiero, Joseph R.; Mainzer, A. K.; Grav, T.; Bauer, J. M.; Cutri, R. M.; Dailey, J.; et al. (November 2011). "Main Belt Asteroids with WISE/NEOWISE. I. Preliminary Albedos and Diameters". The Astrophysical Journal. 741 (2): 20. arXiv:1109.4096. Bibcode:2011ApJ...741...68M. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/741/2/68. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
5. ^ Mainzer, A.; Grav, T.; Masiero, J.; Hand, E.; Bauer, J.; Tholen, D.; et al. (November 2011). "NEOWISE Studies of Spectrophotometrically Classified Asteroids: Preliminary Results". The Astrophysical Journal. 741 (2): 25. arXiv:1109.6407. Bibcode:2011ApJ...741...90M. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/741/2/90.
6. ^ Macias, Amadeo Aznar (January 2015). "Asteroid Lightcurve Analysis at Isaac Aznar Observatory Aras De Los Olmos, Valencia, Spain". The Minor Planet Bulletin. 42 (1): 4–6. Bibcode:2015MPBu...42....4M. ISSN 1052-8091. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
7. ^ Waszczak, Adam; Chang, Chan-Kao; Ofek, Eran O.; Laher, Russ; Masci, Frank; Levitan, David; et al. (September 2015). "Asteroid Light Curves from the Palomar Transient Factory Survey: Rotation Periods and Phase Functions from Sparse Photometry". The Astronomical Journal. 150 (3): 35. arXiv:1504.04041. Bibcode:2015AJ....150...75W. doi:10.1088/0004-6256/150/3/75. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
8. Veres, Peter; Jedicke, Robert; Fitzsimmons, Alan; Denneau, Larry; Granvik, Mikael; Bolin, Bryce; et al. (November 2015). "Absolute magnitudes and slope parameters for 250,000 asteroids observed by Pan-STARRS PS1 - Preliminary results". Icarus. 261: 34–47. arXiv:1506.00762. Bibcode:2015Icar..261...34V. doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2015.08.007. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
9. ^ "2956 Yeomans (1982 HN1)". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
10. "MPC/MPO/MPS Archive". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 13 September 2017.

External links

• Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB), query form (info Archived 16 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine)
• APT Asteroid Photometric Survey, query form ()
• Dictionary of Minor Planet Names, Google books
• Asteroids and comets rotation curves, CdR – Observatoire de Genève, Raoul Behrend
• Discovery Circumstances: Numbered Minor Planets (1)-(5000) – Minor Planet Center
• 2956 Yeomans at AstDyS-2, Asteroids—Dynamic Site
  • Ephemeris · Observation prediction · Orbital info · Proper elements · Observational info
• 2956 Yeomans at the JPL Small-Body Database
  • Close approach · Discovery · Ephemeris · Orbit viewer · Orbit parameters · Physical parameters

• Minor planet object articles (numbered)
• Background asteroids
• Discoveries by Edward L. G. Bowell
• Named minor planets
• Sr-type asteroids (SMASS)
• Astronomical objects discovered in 1982