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2349 Kurchenko, provisional designation 1970 OG, is a background asteroid from the central regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 24 kilometers (15 miles) in diameter. It was discovered on 30 July 1970, by Russian astronomer Tamara Smirnova at the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory in Nauchnij, on the Crimean peninsula. It was named for Soviet flight attendant Nadezhda Kurchenko who was killed during an airline hijacking in 1970. The asteroid has a rotation period of 8.6 hours and possibly a spherical shape.

Orbit and classification

Kurchenko is a non-family asteroid from the main belt's background population. It orbits the Sun in the central asteroid belt at a distance of 2.4–3.1 AU once every 4 years and 7 months (1,683 days; semi-major axis of 2.77 AU). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.12 and an inclination of 17° with respect to the ecliptic. The body's observation arc begins with its observation as 1957 WM₁ at Goethe Link Observatory in November 1957, almost 13 years prior to its official discovery observation at Nauchnij.

Occultation

On 19 October 2008, the asteroid occulted the star TYC 0160-01337-1. All five observers reported a negative result.

Physical characteristics

In the SMASS classification, Kurchenko is an Xc-subtype that transitions between the X-type and the carbonaceous C-type asteroids. It is also an assumed C-type.

Rotation period

In April 2010, a rotational lightcurve of Kurchenko was obtained from photometric observations the R-band by astronomers at the Palomar Transient Factory in California. Lightcurve analysis gave a rotation period of 8.622 hours with a low brightness amplitude of 0.06 magnitude, indicative for a spherical shape (U=2).

Diameter and albedo

According to the surveys carried out by the Japanese Akari satellite and the NEOWISE mission of NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, Kurchenko measures between 18.801 and 24.69 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo between 0.071 and 0.206.

The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes a standard albedo for a carbonaceous asteroid of 0.057 and calculates a diameter of 27.34 kilometers based on an absolute magnitude of 11.54.

Naming

This minor planet was named after Nadezhda Kurchenko (1950–1970), a Soviet flight attendant who was killed during the hijacking of Aeroflot Flight 244 on 15 October 1970. The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 8 February 1982 (M.P.C. 6648).

References

1. ^ "2349 Kurchenko (1970 OG)". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
2. ^ Schmadel, Lutz D. (2007). "(2349) Kurchenko". Dictionary of Minor Planet Names – (2349) Kurchenko. Springer Berlin Heidelberg. p. 191. doi:10.1007/978-3-540-29925-7_2350. ISBN 978-3-540-00238-3.
3. ^ "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 2349 Kurchenko (1970 OG)" (2017-11-27 last obs.). Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
4. ^ "LCDB Data for (2349) Kurchenko". Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB). Retrieved 28 March 2018.
5. ^ "Asteroid 2349 Kurchenko – Proper Elements". AstDyS-2, Asteroids – Dynamic Site. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
6. ^ Masiero, Joseph R.; Grav, T.; Mainzer, A. K.; Nugent, C. R.; Bauer, J. M.; Stevenson, R.; et al. (August 2014). "Main-belt Asteroids with WISE/NEOWISE: Near-infrared Albedos". The Astrophysical Journal. 791 (2): 11. arXiv:1406.6645. Bibcode:2014ApJ...791..121M. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/791/2/121. S2CID 119293330.
7. ^ Mainzer, A.; Grav, T.; Masiero, J.; Hand, E.; Bauer, J.; Tholen, D.; et al. (November 2011). "NEOWISE Studies of Spectrophotometrically Classified Asteroids: Preliminary Results". The Astrophysical Journal. 741 (2): 25. arXiv:1109.6407. Bibcode:2011ApJ...741...90M. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/741/2/90. S2CID 35447010.
8. ^ Usui, Fumihiko; Kuroda, Daisuke; Müller, Thomas G.; Hasegawa, Sunao; Ishiguro, Masateru; Ootsubo, Takafumi; et al. (October 2011). "Asteroid Catalog Using Akari: AKARI/IRC Mid-Infrared Asteroid Survey". Publications of the Astronomical Society of Japan. 63 (5): 1117–1138. Bibcode:2011PASJ...63.1117U. doi:10.1093/pasj/63.5.1117. (online, AcuA catalog p. 153)
9. ^ Nugent, C. R.; Mainzer, A.; Bauer, J.; Cutri, R. M.; Kramer, E. A.; Grav, T.; et al. (September 2016). "NEOWISE Reactivation Mission Year Two: Asteroid Diameters and Albedos". The Astronomical Journal. 152 (3): 12. arXiv:1606.08923. Bibcode:2016AJ....152...63N. doi:10.3847/0004-6256/152/3/63.
10. ^ Waszczak, Adam; Chang, Chan-Kao; Ofek, Eran O.; Laher, Russ; Masci, Frank; Levitan, David; et al. (September 2015). "Asteroid Light Curves from the Palomar Transient Factory Survey: Rotation Periods and Phase Functions from Sparse Photometry". The Astronomical Journal. 150 (3): 35. arXiv:1504.04041. Bibcode:2015AJ....150...75W. doi:10.1088/0004-6256/150/3/75. S2CID 8342929. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
11. Veres, Peter; Jedicke, Robert; Fitzsimmons, Alan; Denneau, Larry; Granvik, Mikael; Bolin, Bryce; et al. (November 2015). "Absolute magnitudes and slope parameters for 250,000 asteroids observed by Pan-STARRS PS1 - Preliminary results". Icarus. 261: 34–47. arXiv:1506.00762. Bibcode:2015Icar..261...34V. doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2015.08.007. S2CID 53493339. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
12. "2008 European Asteroidal Occultation Results". Euraster. Retrieved 28 March 2018.(index)
13. "MPC/MPO/MPS Archive". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 28 March 2018.

External links

• Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB), query form (info Archived 16 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine)
• Dictionary of Minor Planet Names, Google books
• Discovery Circumstances: Numbered Minor Planets (1)-(5000) – Minor Planet Center
• 2349 Kurchenko at AstDyS-2, Asteroids—Dynamic Site
  • Ephemeris · Observation prediction · Orbital info · Proper elements · Observational info
• 2349 Kurchenko at the JPL Small-Body Database
  • Close approach · Discovery · Ephemeris · Orbit viewer · Orbit parameters · Physical parameters

• Minor planet object articles (numbered)
• Background asteroids
• Discoveries by Tamara Mikhaylovna Smirnova
• Named minor planets
• Xc-type asteroids (SMASS)
• Astronomical objects discovered in 1970