3318 Blixen

3318 Blixen, provisionally designated 1985 HB, is a stony Eoan asteroid from the outer region of the asteroid belt, approximately 23 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered by Danish astronomers Poul Jensen and Karl Augustesen at Brorfelde Observatory on 23 April 1985.^[5]

3318 Blixen

Discovery [1]
Discovered by	P. Jensen K. Augustesen
Discovery site	Brorfelde Obs.
Discovery date	23 April 1985
Designations
MPC designation	(3318) Blixen
Named after	Karen Blixen[2]
Alternative designations	1985 HB · 1943 GP 1950 RT · 1953 CJ 1962 YF · 1970 KB 1972 XL1 · 1976 QW1 1979 DH
Minor planet category	main-belt · Eos [3]
Orbital characteristics [1]
Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Observation arc	74.16 yr (27,087 days)
Aphelion	3.1569 AU
Perihelion	2.8585 AU
Semi-major axis	3.0077 AU
Eccentricity	0.0496
Orbital period (sidereal)	5.22 yr (1,905 days)
Mean anomaly	116.45°
Mean motion	0° 11m 20.4s / day
Inclination	11.573°
Longitude of ascending node	109.09°
Argument of perihelion	49.585°
Physical characteristics
Dimensions	22.658±0.214[4] 23.5 km
Synodic rotation period	6.456±0.003[3]
Geometric albedo	0.1275±0.031 0.204±0.023[4]
Spectral type	S [3]
Absolute magnitude (H)	11.0[1][3]

Blixen is a member of the Eos family (606), the largest asteroid family in the outer main belt consisting of nearly 10,000 asteroids. It orbits the Sun at a distance of 2.9–3.2 AU once every 5 years and 3 months (1,905 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.05 and an inclination of 12° with respect to the ecliptic.^[1]

Photometric observations of this asteroid collected during 2006 show a rotation period of 6.456 ± 0.003 hours with a brightness variation of 0.20 ± 0.02 magnitude.^[6]

This minor planet was named after Danish novelist Karen Blixen (1885–1962), best known for the memoir Out of Africa.^[2] The approved naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 18 September 1986 (M.P.C. 11161).^[7]