| Discovery [1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | T. Smirnova |
| Discovery site | Crimean Astrophysical Obs. |
| Discovery date | 27 June 1971 |
| Designations | |
| (2121) Sevastopol | |
| Pronunciation | /səˈvæstəpoʊl/[2] |
Named after | Sevastopol city[3] |
| 1971 ME · 1932 HM 1936 WD · 1938 DY 1939 TO · 1952 SZ 1968 QJ1 · 1977 ED2 1978 WG | |
| main-belt · Flora [4] | |
| Orbital characteristics [1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 79.82 yr (29,154 days) |
| Aphelion | 2.5731 AU |
| Perihelion | 1.7945 AU |
| 2.1838 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.1783 |
| 3.23 yr (1,179 days) | |
| 94.889° | |
| 0° 18m 19.44s / day | |
| Inclination | 4.3780° |
| 145.72° | |
| 160.38° | |
| Known satellites | 1[4][5] |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 8.736±0.037 km[6] 12.48 km (calculated)[4] |
| 2.90640 h[4] | |
| 0.24 (assumed)[4] 0.308±0.023[6] | |
| S [4] | |
| 12.2 | |
| Discovery | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | D. Higgins, P. Pravec, P. Kusnirak, J. Pollock, J. Oey, M. Husarik, G. Cervak, D. E. Reichart, K. M. Ivarsen, J. B. Haislip, and A. LaCluyze |
| Discovery date | 2010/07/23 |
| Light curve | |
| Orbital characteristics | |
| 26 km | |
| 1.546 d 13 hours, 6 minutes | |
| 46 mas (maximum) | |
| Satellite of | 2121 Sevastopol |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 3.54 ± 0.17 km |
| Volume | 20.0-26.7 km3 (assumed) |
| 1.9 ± 0.1 fainter than primary | |
| ~16.1 | |
2121 Sevastopol, provisional designation 1971 ME, is a stony Florian asteroid and synchronous binary system from the inner regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 10 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 27 June 1971, by Russian astronomer Tamara Smirnova at the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory in Nauchnij, on the Crimean peninsula.[7] Its minor-planet moon was discovered in 2010.
Sevastopol is a member of the Flora family, one of the largest groups of stony asteroids in the main-belt. It orbits the Sun in the inner main-belt at a distance of 1.8–2.6 AU once every 3 years and 3 months (1,179 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.18 and an inclination of 4° with respect to the ecliptic.[1]
In 2010, a minor-planet moon, designated S/2010 (2121) 1, was discovered around Sevastopol, orbiting at a distance of 26 kilometers with a diameter of 3.54 ± 0.17 km.[5]
The asteroid was named after the Crimean city on the 200th anniversary of its foundation.[3] The approved naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 28 January 1983 (M.P.C. 7616).[8]
