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3031 Houston, provisional designation 1984 CX, is a stony Florian asteroid from the inner regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 6 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 8 February 1984, by American astronomer Edward Bowell at Anderson Mesa Station near Flagstaff, Arizona.[11] It was named after American amateur astronomer Walter Scott Houston.[2]
| Discovery [1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | E. Bowell |
| Discovery site | Anderson Mesa Stn. |
| Discovery date | 8 February 1984 |
| Designations | |
| (3031) Houston | |
Named after | Walter Scott Houston (American amateur astronomer)[2] |
| 1984 CX · 1954 EF 1978 NP · 1979 VT1 1981 JL1 | |
| main-belt · (inner) Flora [3][4] | |
| Orbital characteristics [1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 63.16 yr (23,071 days) |
| Aphelion | 2.4553 AU |
| Perihelion | 2.0169 AU |
| 2.2361 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.0980 |
| 3.34 yr (1,221 days) | |
| 330.84° | |
| 0° 17m 41.28s / day | |
| Inclination | 4.3407° |
| 317.78° | |
| 249.40° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 5.45±0.81 km[5] 6.43±0.14 km[6] 6.430±0.141 km[6] 6.761±0.028 km[7] 7.14 km (calculated)[3] |
| 5.61±0.060 h (half)[8] 11.175±0.0532 h[9] 11.218±0.006 h[10] | |
| 0.24 (assumed)[3] 0.2456±0.0331[7] 0.270±0.028[6] 0.39±0.20[5] | |
| S [3] | |
| 12.787±0.001 (R)[9] · 12.80[5] · 12.810±0.080 (R)[8] · 12.9[1][3] · 13.00[6][7] | |
Houston is a member of the Flora family (402), a giant asteroid family and the largest family of stony asteroids in the main-belt.[3][4][12]: 23 It orbits the Sun in the inner main-belt at a distance of 2.0–2.5 AU once every 3 years and 4 months (1,221 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.10 and an inclination of 4° with respect to the ecliptic.[1]
The body's observation arc begins with its identification as 1954 EF at Goethe Link Observatory in October 1954, or 30 years prior to its official discovery observation at Anderson Mesa.[11]
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Houston is an assumed S-type asteroid, in line with the Flora family's overall spectral type.[3][12]: 23
Rotation period
In April 2011, a rotational lightcurve of Houston was obtained from photometric observations by astronomers at the Oakley Southern Sky Observatory (E09) in Australia. Lightcurve analysis gave a well-defined rotation period of 11.218 hours with a brightness amplitude of 0.11 magnitude (U=3). Two more lightcurves obtained at the Palomar Transient Factory in 2014, gave a period of 5.61 (half the period solution) and 11.175 hours with an amplitude of 0.17 and 0.14 magnitude, respectively (U=2/2).[8][9]
Diameter and albedo
According to the survey carried out by the NEOWISE mission of NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, Houston measures between 5.45 and 6.761 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo between 0.2456 and 0.39.[5][6][7]
The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes an albedo of 0.24 – derived from 8 Flora, the largest member and namesake of the Flora family – and calculates a diameter of 7.14 kilometers based on an absolute magnitude of 12.9.[3]
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This minor planet was named after Walter Scott Houston (1912–1993), an American amateur astronomer best known for his column "Deep-Sky Wonders" in the Sky and Telescope magazine. Houston, who observed deep-sky objects, has also encouraged many amateur astronomers.
The name was proposed by the discoverer following a suggestion by P. L. Dombrowski.[2] The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 22 June 1986 (M.P.C. 10845).[13]
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