Misplaced Pages

4177 Kohman, provisional designation 1987 SS₁, is a resonant Griqua asteroid from the outermost regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 11 kilometers (6.8 miles) in diameter. It was discovered on 21 September 1987, by American astronomer Edward Bowell at the Anderson Mesa Station of the Lowell Observatory near Flagstaff, Arizona, in the United States. The asteroid was named for American nuclear chemist Truman Kohman.

Orbit and classification

Kohman is a non-family asteroid from the main belt's background population, and a member of the small group of Griqua asteroids, located in the Hecuba gap and locked in a 2:1 mean-motion resonance with the gas giant Jupiter. Contrary to the nearby Zhongguo asteroids, the orbits of the Griquas are less stable with a much shorter lifetime.

It orbits the Sun in the outer main-belt at a distance of 2.4–4.2 AU once every 6.00 years (2,192 days; semi-major axis of 3.3 AU). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.29 and an inclination of 17° with respect to the ecliptic. The body's observation arc begins with a precovery taken at the Siding Spring Observatory in May 1984, more than 3 years prior to its official discovery observation at Anderson Mesa.

Physical characteristics

Kohman has an absolute magnitude of 13.0. As of 2018, no rotational lightcurve for this has been obtained from photometric observations. The body's rotation period, pole and shape remain unknown.

Diameter and albedo

According to the survey carried out by the NEOWISE mission of NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, Kohman measures 11.06 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo of 0.12.

Naming

This minor planet was named after Truman Paul Kohman (1916–2010), American professor of nuclear chemistry at Carnegie Mellon University who co-discovered in 1954 the nuclide aluminium-26, which has since been studied in meteorites and given important information about the early history of the Solar System. In 1947 he coined the word nuclide to describe an atom with given numbers of protons and neutrons in its nucleus. Kohman was also an ardent amateur astronomer.

The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 23 May 2000 (M.P.C. 40700).

References

1. ^ "4177 Kohman (1987 SS1)". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
2. ^ "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 4177 Kohman (1987 SS1)" (2018-01-27 last obs.). Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
3. ^ Roig, F.; Nesvorný, D.; Ferraz-Mello, S. (September 2002). "Asteroids in the 2 : 1 resonance with Jupiter: dynamics and size distribution [ Erratum: 2002MNRAS.336.1391R ]" (PDF). Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. 335 (2): 417–431. Bibcode:2002MNRAS.335..417R. doi:10.1046/j.1365-8711.2002.05635.x. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
4. ^ "Asteroid 4177 Kohman – Proper Elements". AstDyS-2, Asteroids – Dynamic Site. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
5. ^ 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 27 April 2018.
6. ^ Belko, Mark (1 May 2010). "Obituary: Truman P. Kohman – Chemistry professor with eyes always on stars". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on 14 December 2019. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
7. Kohman, Truman P. (July 1947). "Proposed New Word: Nuclide". American Journal of Physics. 15 (4): 356–357. Bibcode:1947AmJPh..15..356K. doi:10.1119/1.1990965. Retrieved 2 May 2018.
8. "MPC/MPO/MPS Archive". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 27 April 2018.

External links

• Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB), query form (info Archived 16 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine)
• Dictionary of Minor Planet Names, Google books
• Discovery Circumstances: Numbered Minor Planets (1)-(5000) – Minor Planet Center
• 4177 Kohman at AstDyS-2, Asteroids—Dynamic Site
  • Ephemeris · Observation prediction · Orbital info · Proper elements · Observational info
• 4177 Kohman at the JPL Small-Body Database
  • Close approach · Discovery · Ephemeris · Orbit viewer · Orbit parameters · Physical parameters

• Minor planet object articles (numbered)
• Griqua asteroids
• Background asteroids
• Discoveries by Edward L. G. Bowell
• Named minor planets
• Astronomical objects discovered in 1987