1810 Epimetheus

1810 Epimetheus

Discovery
Discovered by	Palomar–Leiden survey C. J. van Houten, I. van Houten-Groeneveld and Tom Gehrels
Discovery site	Palomar Obs.
Discovery date	24 September 1960
Designations
MPC designation	1810 Epimetheus
Named after	Epimetheus (mythology)
Alternative names	4196 P–L · 1942 FS 1950 SC · 1957 WC1 1962 GC · 1970 SS
Minor planet category	main-belt · Flora
Orbital characteristics
Epoch 27 June 2015 (JD 2457200.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Observation arc	61.98 yr (22,637 days)
Aphelion	2.4288 AU
Perihelion	2.0187 AU
Semi-major axis	2.2237 AU
Eccentricity	0.0922
Orbital period	3.32 yr (1,211 days)
Mean anomaly	100.93°
Inclination	4.0315°
Longitude of ascending node	254.13°
Argument of perihelion	203.77°
Physical characteristics
Dimensions	7.67±0.16 km 8.19 km (calculated)
Rotation period	28.61 h 10.88±0.02 h
Geometric albedo	0.274±0.037 0.24 (assumed)
Spectral type	S
Absolute magnitude (H)	12.6

1810 Epimetheus, also designated 4196 P–L, is a stony asteroid from the inner regions of the asteroid belt. It measures about 8 kilometers in diameter and is a member of the Flora family of asteroids. Epimetheus was discovered on September 24, 1960 by the Dutch and Dutch–American astronomers Cornelis van Houten, Ingrid van Houten-Groeneveld and Tom Gehrels at Palomar Observatory near Pauma Valley in California.

The S-type asteroid has an albedo of 0.274±0.037. It orbits the Sun at a distance of 2.0–2.4 AU once every 3 years and 4 months (1,211 days). Two different light-curve measurements gave a period of the body's rotation of 10.9 and 28.6 hours, respectively.

The designation P–L stands for Palomar–Leiden, named after Palomar Observatory and Leiden Observatory, which collaborated on the fruitful Palomar–Leiden survey in the 1960s. Gehrels used Palomar's Samuel Oschin telescope (also known as the 48-inch Schmidt Telescope), and shipped the photographic plates to Cornelis Johannes van Houten and Ingrid van Houten-Groeneveld at Leiden Observatory. The trio are credited with several thousand asteroid discoveries.

The asteroid is named after the Titan in Greek mythology, Epimetheus, who opened Pandora's box, which contained all the illnesses and ailments of mankind (also see 55 Pandora). The name is also given to a moon of Saturn, Epimetheus (moon), discovered by the Voyager 1 spacecraft in 1980. Epimetheus is the brother of Prometheus after which the minor planet 1809 Prometheus was named.

External links

• Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB), query form (info)
• Dictionary of Minor Planet Names, Google books
• Asteroids and comets rotation curves, CdR – Observatoire de Geneve, Raoul Behrend
• 1810 Epimetheus at the JPL Small-Body Database

• Discovery · Orbit diagram · Orbital elements · Physical parameters