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2005 LW3

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2005 LW3
Radar image of 2005 LW3 and its satellite (below) by the Goldstone Solar System Radar on 23 November 2022
Discovery[1][2]
Discovered bySiding Spring Survey
Discovery siteSiding Spring Obs.
Discovery date5 June 2005
Designations
2005 LW3
NEO · Apollo · PHA
Orbital characteristics[3]
Epoch 25 February 2023 (JD 2460000.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Observation arc17.49 yr (6,389 days)[1]
Aphelion2.106 AU
Perihelion0.771 AU
1.439 AU
Eccentricity0.4638
1.73 yr (630.3 days)
81.385°
0° 34m 16.171s / day
Inclination6.021°
59.587°
5 October 2022
288.663°
Earth MOID0.001397 AU (209,000 km; 0.544 LD)
Jupiter MOID3.335 AU
Physical characteristics
400 m (primary)[4]
3.6 h[4]
0.02[5]
21.89[3] · 21.68[1]

2005 LW3 is a binary near-Earth asteroid classified as a potentially hazardous object of the Apollo group. It was discovered on 5 June 2005 by the Siding Spring Survey at Siding Spring Observatory in Australia.[2] It made a close approach of 2.97 lunar distances (1.14×10^6 km; 0.71×10^6 mi) from Earth on 23 November 2022, reaching a peak brightness of apparent magnitude 13 as it passed over the northern celestial hemisphere sky.[1] It was extensively observed by astronomers worldwide during the close approach, and radar observations by NASA's Goldstone Solar System Radar in California discovered a 100 m (330 ft)-wide natural satellite orbiting the asteroid at a wide separation of 4 km (2.5 mi).[6][7]

Physical characteristics

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Goldstone Solar System Radar observations in November 2022 resolved the shape of 2005 LW3, revealing a body 400 m (1,300 ft) in diameter—larger than its previously expected diameter of 150 m (490 ft).[4][7] For an absolute magnitude of 21.9, this radar-measured diameter indicates that 2005 LW3 has a very low geometric albedo of 0.02.[5] These radar observations also determined a rotation period of 3.6 hours for 2005 LW3.[4]

Satellite

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The satellite of 2005 LW3 was discovered by a team of astronomers[a] using Goldstone Solar System Radar observations from 23–27 November 2022. The satellite appears elongated, with equatorial dimensions of 100 m × 50 m (330 ft × 160 ft).[4] The satellite is widely separated from 2005 LW3 (the primary body of the system) at a semi-major axis of about 4 km (2.5 mi),[4] which is around 17% of the primary's Hill radius (24 km or 15 mi for an assumed primary density of 1.6 g/cm3).[5] The satellite's discovery was announced in a Central Bureau Electronic Telegram on 10 December 2022.[4]

Notes

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  1. ^ Observers credited for the discovery of the satellite include: S. P. Naidu, L. A. M. Benner, M. Brozovic, J. D. Giorgini, S. Horiuchi, I. Savill-Brown, J. Stevens, C. Phillips, P. Edwards, and E. Kruzins.[4]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "2005 LW3". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  2. ^ a b "MPEC 2005-L19 : 2005 LW3". Minor Planet Electronic Circular. Minor Planet Center. 6 June 2005. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  3. ^ a b "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: (2005 LW3)" (2022-12-02 last obs.). Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Green, Daniel W. E. (10 December 2022). "CBET 5198: 2005 LW_3". Central Bureau Electronic Telegram. Central Bureau for astronomical Telegrams. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  5. ^ a b c Johnston, Wm. Robert (1 December 2022). "2005 LW3". Johnston's Archive. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  6. ^ "MPEC 2022-U222 : International Asteroid Warning Network (IAWN) Timing Campaign". Minor Planet Electronic Circular. Minor Planet Center. 24 October 2022. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  7. ^ a b Benner, Lance A. M. (10 December 2022). "Goldstone Radar Observations Planning: 2005 LW3, 1998 SS49, and 2017 QL33". echo.jpl.nasa.gov. NASA. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
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