7336 Saunders

{{Short description|Stony asteroid and near-Earth object}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2020}}

{{Infobox planet

| minorplanet = yes

| name = 7336 Saunders

| background = #FFC2E0

| image =

| image_size =

| caption =

| discovery_ref =

| discovered = 6 September 1989

| discoverer = E. F. Helin

| discovery_site = Palomar Obs.

| mpc_name = (7336) Saunders

| alt_names = {{mp|1989 RS|1}}

| pronounced =

| named_after = R. Stephen Saunders
{{small|(JPL scientist)}}

| mp_category = NEO{{·}}Amor

| orbit_ref =

| epoch = 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5)

| uncertainty = 0

| observation_arc = 34.63 yr (12,647 days)

| aphelion = 3.4148 AU

| perihelion = 1.1956 AU

| semimajor = 2.3052 AU

| eccentricity = 0.4813

| period = 3.50 yr (1,278 days)

| mean_anomaly = 353.72°

| mean_motion = {{Deg2DMS|0.2816|sup=ms}} / day

| inclination = 7.1958°

| asc_node = 174.49°

| arg_peri = 181.51°

| moid = 0.1908 AU{{·}}74.3 LD

| dimensions = 0.467 km {{small|(derived)}}

| rotation = {{val|6}} h
{{val|6.423|0.004}} h{{efn|name=Pravec-2003}}

| albedo = 0.20 {{small|(assumed)}}

| spectral_type = SMASS = Sq{{·}}S

| abs_magnitude = 18.0{{·}}{{val|18.45|0.2}} {{small|(R)}}{{efn|name=Pravec-2003}}{{·}}18.8{{·}}{{val|19.02|0.112}}

}}

7336 Saunders, provisional designation {{mp|1989 RS|1}}, is a stony asteroid and near-Earth object of the Amor group, approximately 0.5 kilometers in diameter.

The asteroid was discovered on 6 September 1989, by American astronomer Eleanor Helin at Palomar Observatory in California, United States. It was named for JPL-project scientist R. Stephen Saunders.

Orbit and classification

Saunders orbits the Sun at a distance of 1.2–3.4 AU once every 3 years and 6 months (1,278 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.48 and an inclination of 7° with respect to the ecliptic.

A first precovery was taken at the Australian Siding Spring Observatory in 1982, extending the body's observation arc by 7 years prior to its official discovery at Palomar. It has a minimum orbital intersection distance with Earth of {{convert |0.1908 |AU |km |abbr=on |lk=off |sigfig=3}}, which corresponds to 74.3 lunar distances.

Physical characteristics

In the SMASS classification, Saunders is a Sq-type, which transitions from the common S-type to the Q-type asteroids. The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes a standard albedo for stony asteroids of 0.20 and derives a diameter of 467 meters, based on an absolute magnitude of 19.02.

= Lightcurve =

In October 1989, the first photometric observations of Saunders were made with the ESO 1-metre telescope at La Silla in Chile. It gave a rotation period of 6 hours with a brightness variation of 0.3 magnitude ({{small|U=2}}). Another rotational lightcurve was obtained by Czech astronomer Petr Pravec at Ondřejov Observatory in August 2003, giving a period of {{val|6.423|0.004}} and an amplitude of 0.2 magnitude ({{small|U=n.a.}}).{{efn|name=Pravec-2003}}

Naming

This minor planet was named in honor of JPL-project scientist R. Stephen Saunders (born 1940), director of the RPIF and head scientist of the Solar System Exploration Office. He worked on the Mars Surveyor 2001/03 program and on the Magellan spacecraft, that visited and mapped Venus in 1990. The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 26 July 2000 ({{small|M.P.C. 41028}}).

Notes

{{notelist|refs=

{{efn|name=Pravec-2003|1=Pravec (2003): rotation period {{val|6.423|0.004}} hours with a brightness amplitude of {{val|0.2}} mag. Summary figures for (7336) Saunders at [http://www.minorplanet.info/PHP/generateOneAsteroidInfo.php?AstInfo=7336%7CSaunders Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link (CALL)] and [http://www.asu.cas.cz/~ppravec/neo.htm Pravec, P.; Wolf, M.; Sarounova, L. (2003)]}}

}}

References

{{reflist|30em|refs=

{{cite web

|type = 2017-06-05 last obs.

|title = JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 7336 Saunders (1989 RS1)

|url = https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=2007336

|publisher = Jet Propulsion Laboratory

|access-date = 22 June 2017}}

{{cite book

|title = Dictionary of Minor Planet Names – (7336) Saunders

|last = Schmadel | first = Lutz D.

|publisher = Springer Berlin Heidelberg

|page = 591

|date = 2007

|isbn = 978-3-540-00238-3

|doi = 10.1007/978-3-540-29925-7_6435 |chapter = (7336) Saunders }}

{{cite web

|title = 7336 Saunders (1989 RS1)

|work = Minor Planet Center

|url = https://www.minorplanetcenter.net/db_search/show_object?object_id=7336

|access-date = 26 September 2016}}

{{cite web

|title = MPC/MPO/MPS Archive

|work = Minor Planet Center

|url = https://www.minorplanetcenter.net/iau/ECS/MPCArchive/MPCArchive_TBL.html

|access-date = 26 September 2016}}

{{cite web

|title = LCDB Data for (7336) Saunders

|publisher = Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB)

|url = http://www.minorplanet.info/PHP/generateOneAsteroidInfo.php?AstInfo=7336%7CSaunders

|access-date = 26 September 2016}}

{{Cite journal

|first1 = Martin |last1 = Hoffmann

|first2 = Helge |last2 = Rebhan

|first3 = Gerhard |last3 = Neukum

|first4 = Edward H. |last4 = Geyer

|date = January 1993

|title = Photometric observations of four near-earth asteroids

|url = http://adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/bib_query?bibcode=1993AcA....43...61H

|journal = Acta Astronomica

|volume = 43

|pages = 61–67

|issn = 0001-5237

|bibcode = 1993AcA....43...61H

|access-date= 26 September 2016}}

{{Cite journal

|first1 = Petr |last1 = Pravec

|first2 = Alan W. |last2 = Harris

|first3 = Peter |last3 = Kusnirák

|first4 = Adrián |last4 = Galád

|first5 = Kamil |last5 = Hornoch

|date = September 2012

|title = Absolute magnitudes of asteroids and a revision of asteroid albedo estimates from WISE thermal observations

|url = http://adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/bib_query?bibcode=2012Icar..221..365P

|journal = Icarus

|volume = 221

|issue = 1

|pages = 365–387

|bibcode = 2012Icar..221..365P

|doi = 10.1016/j.icarus.2012.07.026

|access-date= 26 September 2016}}

}}