492 Gismonda is a main belt asteroid discovered by German astronomer Max Wolf in 1902. Gismonda is named after the daughter of Tancred, prince of Salerno, from Giovanni Boccaccio's work, The Decameron.[2] It is orbiting 3.11 AU (466 Gm) from the Sun with a period of 5.49 yr and an orbital eccentricity (ovalness) of 0.18. The orbital plane is inclined at an angle of 1.6° to the plane of the ecliptic.[1]

492 Gismonda
Discovery
Discovered byMax Wolf
Discovery siteHeidelberg Observatory
Discovery date3 September 1902
Designations
(492) Gismonda
Pronunciation/ɪzˈmɒndə/
1902 JR
Orbital characteristics[1]
Epoch 31 July 2016 (JD 2457600.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Observation arc113.62 yr (41499 d)
Aphelion3.6662 AU (548.46 Gm)
Perihelion2.5610 AU (383.12 Gm)
3.1136 AU (465.79 Gm)
Eccentricity0.17747
5.49 yr (2,006.7 d)
267.617°
0° 10m 45.84s / day
Inclination1.6188°
46.215°
296.611°
Physical characteristics
25.845±0.7 km
6.488 h (0.2703 d)
0.0795±0.005
9.9

This asteroid is a member of the Themis collisional family, which is one of the largest such groups in the belt. It has an estimated diameter of 50.3±1.1 km. The spectrum suggests the surface is covered with a fine grained silicate mantle.[3] Photometric observations of Gismonda made in 1902 produce a light curve displaying a rotation period of 6.488±0.005 h with a brightness variation of 0.16±0.02 in magnitude[4]

References

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  1. ^ a b "492 Gismonda (1902 JR)". JPL Small-Body Database. NASA/Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  2. ^ "(492) Gismonda". (492) Gismonda In: Dictionary of Minor Planet Names. Springer. 2003. p. 54. doi:10.1007/978-3-540-29925-7_493. ISBN 978-3-540-29925-7.
  3. ^ Licandro, J.; et al. (January 2012). "5-14 μm Spitzer spectra of Themis family asteroids". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 537. id. A73. Bibcode:2012A&A...537A..73L. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/201118142.
  4. ^ Koff, R. A. (June 2002). "Lightcurve Photometry of 492 Gismonda, 1046 Edwin, and 1310 Villigera". The Minor Planet Bulletin. 29: 25–26. Bibcode:2002MPBu...29...25K.
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