Asteroid 5535 Annefrank size, shape, and orientation: Stardust first results
Abstract
The NASA Discovery Stardust spacecraft flew by the main belt asteroid 5535 Annefrank at a distance of 3100 km and a speed of 7.4 km/s in November 2002 to test the encounter sequence developed for its primary science target, the comet 81P/Wild 2. During this testing, over 70 images of Annefrank were obtained, taken over a phase angle range from 40 to 140 deg. This viewing showed that Annefrank was at least 6.6 × 5.0 × 3.4 km in size (diameters), with its shortest dimension normal to its orbit plane. Annefrank is highly angular, with flat appearing surfaces, possibly planes formed when it was fractured off of a larger parent body. For the limited part of the surface seen, Annefrank resembles a triangular prism for the main body, with smaller, rounder bodies, possibly accreted through contact.
- Publication:
-
Journal of Geophysical Research (Planets)
- Pub Date:
- February 2004
- DOI:
- 10.1029/2003JE002108
- Bibcode:
- 2004JGRE..109.2002D
- Keywords:
-
- Planetology: Solar System Objects: Asteroids and meteoroids;
- Geodesy and Gravity: Planetary geodesy and gravity (5420;
- 5714;
- 6019);
- Geodesy and Gravity: Photogrammetry;
- Planetology: Comets and Small Bodies: Orbital and rotational dynamics;
- Planetology: Comets and Small Bodies: Remote sensing