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2012 FC₇₁, also written 2012 FC71, is a small asteroid trapped in a Kozai resonance with the Earth.

Discovery, orbit and physical properties

It was first observed on 31 March 2012 by Andrea Boattini, observing for the Mt. Lemmon Survey. Its orbit is characterized by low eccentricity (0.088), low inclination (4.97º) and a semi-major axis of 0.9895 AU. It is an Aten asteroid but also an Earth crosser. As of 21 April 2012 its orbit is based on 35 observations spanning a data-arc of 21 days. This short observation arc results in an orbit uncertainty of 7. It has not been seen since and is unlikely to be seen again for several decades. It will remain both very dim (around apparent magnitude 27), and close in the sky to the Sun (solar elongation of less than 90 degrees), making it impossible to observe with current ground based telescopes till the 2060s. A number of times during the decade it will again be visible in the night sky and at times be brighter than apparent magnitude 21, as when it was first observed.

Kozai resonator and future orbital evolution

2012 FC₇₁ is locked in a Kozai resonance and as such it has a very slow orbital evolution and it will remain relatively unperturbed for hundreds of thousands of years. It had a close encounter with the Earth on 18 April 2012 at 0.076 AU when it was discovered and another on 17 May 2013 at 0.0581 AU, which was not observed.

Origin

It may have been originated within the Venus-Earth-Mars region or in the main asteroid belt like other Near-Earth Objects, then transitioned to an Amor-class asteroid before entering Earth's co-orbital region.

See also

• 3753 Cruithne
• 2001 GO2
• 2002 AA29
• 2003 YN107
• 2006 JY26
• 2009 SH2
• 2010 SO16
• 2013 BS45

Notes

• This is assuming an albedo of 0.20–0.04.

References

1. ^ "2012 FC71". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
2. ^ "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 2012 FC71" (2012-04-21 last obs.). Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
3. "Absolute Magnitude (H)". NASA/JPL. Archived from the original on 2 March 2001. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
4. ^ de la Fuente Marcos, C.; de la Fuente Marcos, R. (July 2013). "A resonant family of dynamically cold small bodies in the near-Earth asteroid belt". Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters. 434 (1): L1 – L5. arXiv:1305.2825. Bibcode:2013MNRAS.434L...1D. doi:10.1093/mnrasl/slt062.
5. Discovery MPEC
6. ^ MPC data on 2012 FC71

Further reading

• Secular perturbations of asteroids with high inclination and eccentricity Kozai, Y. 1962, Astronomical Journal, Vol. 67, p. 591
• The Kozai resonance for near-Earth asteroids with semimajor axes smaller than 2AU Michel, P., & Thomas, F. 1996, Astronomy and Astrophysics, Vol. 307, p. 310
• A resonant family of dynamically cold small bodies in the near-Earth asteroid belt de la Fuente Marcos, C., de la Fuente Marcos, R. 2013, Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters, Vol. 434, Issue 1, pp. L1-L5

External links

• List Of Aten Minor Planets, Minor Planet Center
• MPEC 2012-G13 : 2012 FC71, discovery Minor Planet Electronic Circular (MPEC)
• AstDys-2 on 2012 FC71 at AstDys
• NEODyS-2 on 2012 FC71 at NEODyS
• 2012 FC71 at NeoDyS-2, Near Earth Objects—Dynamic Site
  • Ephemerides · Observation prediction · Orbital info · MOID · Proper elements · Observational info · Close approaches · Physical info · Orbit animation
• 2012 FC71 at ESA–space situational awareness
  • Ephemerides · Observations · Orbit · Physical properties · Summary
• 2012 FC71 at the JPL Small-Body Database
  • Close approach · Discovery · Ephemeris · Orbit viewer · Orbit parameters · Physical parameters

• Aten asteroids
• Minor planet object articles (unnumbered)
• Discoveries by Andrea Boattini
• Discoveries by MLS
• Earth-crossing asteroids
• Astronomical objects discovered in 2012