34 Circe

34 Circe is a large, very dark main-belt asteroid. It was discovered by French astronomer J. Chacornac on April 6, 1855, and named after Circe, the bewitching queen of Aeaea island in Greek mythology.

34 Circe

A three-dimensional model of 34 Circe based on its light curve
Discovery
Discovered by	J. Chacornac
Discovery date	April 6, 1855
Designations
Designation	(34) Circe
Pronunciation	/ˈsɜːrsiː/[1]
Named after	Circe
Alternative names	1965 JL
Minor planet category	Main belt
Adjectives	Circean /sərˈsiːən/[2]
Orbital characteristics[3]
Epoch November 4, 2013 (JD 2456600.5)
Aphelion	2.967739 AU
Perihelion	2.406230 AU
Semi-major axis	2.686984 AU
Eccentricity	0.1045
Orbital period (sidereal)	4.40 a (1607.332 d)
Average orbital speed	18.12 km/s
Mean anomaly	39.80474°
Inclination	5.498°
Longitude of ascending node	184.44157°
Argument of perihelion	330.2330°
Physical characteristics
Dimensions	113.02 ± 4.90 km[4]
Mass	(3.66 ± 0.03) × 1018 kg[4]
Mean density	4.83 ± 0.63 g/cm3[4]
Surface gravity	~0.0317 m/s²
Escape velocity	~0.0600 km/s
Synodic rotation period	0.5063 d (12.15 h) [3]
Albedo	0.0541 [3]
Temperature	~172 K
Spectral type	C
Absolute magnitude (H)	8.51

The spectrum of this object matches a C-type asteroid, suggesting a carbonaceous composition. It has a cross-section size of 113 km and is orbiting the Sun with a period of 4.40 years. Photometric observations of this asteroid made during 2007 at the Organ Mesa Observatory in Las Cruces, New Mexico gave an asymmetrical bimodal light curve with a period of 12.176 ± 0.002 hours and a brightness variation of 0.17 ± 0.02 in magnitude.^[5] The spectra of the asteroid displays evidence of aqueous alteration.^[6]