17035 Velichko

Orbit and classification

Velichko is a core member of the Vesta family, thought to have originated from the Rheasilvia crater, a large impact crater on the south-polar surface of 4 Vesta, which is the main-belt's second-most-massive asteroid after 1 Ceres.

It orbits the Sun in the inner main-belt at a distance of 2.1–2.8 AU once every 3 years and 10 months (1,395 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.15 and an inclination of 6° with respect to the ecliptic.

The asteroid's observation arc begins 10 years prior to its official discovery observation, with its identification as at ESO's La Silla Observatory in October 1989.

Physical characteristics

Velichko has been characterized as a bright V-type asteroid by Pan-STARRS photometric survey.

Rotation period

Two photometric lightcurves of Velichko were obtained by French astronomer René Roy at the Blauvac Observatory (627) in France, and by astronomers at the Palomar Transient Factory in California. Lightcurve analysis gave a rotation period of and hours with a brightness variation of 0.23 and 0.29 magnitude, respectively ().

Diameter and albedo

According to the survey carried out by the NEOWISE mission of NASA's space-based Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, Velichko has a diameter of 4.8 kilometers and an albedo of 0.28. The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes a much higher albedo of 0.40, which is typical value for the bright stony surface of Vestian asteroids, and calculates a shorter diameter of 4.2 kilometers.

Naming

This minor planet was named after Ukrainian astronomer Fedor P. Velichko (1957–2013), who was a senior scientist at the Institute of Astronomy of the Ukrainian National University of Kharkiv, and director of the University's Chuguev Observing Station (131), also known as the Chuguevskaya Station. He was an expert on the photometry and polarimetry of small Solar System bodies. The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 21 July 2005 (M.P.C. 54563).

References