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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. The asteroid was named after writer Franz Kafka.

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. 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.

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. Kafka is a superslow rotator. Its rotation period of 2,766 hours (about 115 days) is among the longest of any known asteroid.

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. The approved naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 13 February 1987 (M.P.C. 11641).

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. ^ Erasmus, N.; Kramer, D.; McNeill, A.; Trilling, D. E.; Janse van Rensburg, P.; van Belle, G. T.; Tonry, J. L.; Denneau, L.; Heinze, A.; Weiland, H. J. (September 2021). "Discovery of superslow rotating asteroids with ATLAS and ZTF photometry". Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. 506 (3): 3872–3881. arXiv:2106.16066. Bibcode:2021MNRAS.506.3872E. doi:10.1093/mnras/stab1888.
5. ^ "3412 Kafka (1983 AU2)". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 5 December 2016.
6. Edberg & Levy 1994, p. 80.
7. "LCDB Data for (3412) Kafka". Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB). Retrieved 10 September 2023. (Enter 3412 as upper and lower range for the asteroid number, then press "submit".)
8. "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.

External links

• 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
• 3412 Kafka at AstDyS-2, Asteroids—Dynamic Site
  • Ephemeris · Observation prediction · Orbital info · Proper elements · Observational info
• 3412 Kafka at the JPL Small-Body Database
  • Close approach · Discovery · Ephemeris · Orbit viewer · Orbit parameters · Physical parameters

• Minor planet object articles (numbered)
• Named minor planets
• Franz Kafka
• Astronomical objects discovered in 1983