Discovered by K. Reinmuth Discovered 31 December 1931 Discoverer Karl Wilhelm Reinmuth | Discovery date 31 December 1931 Alternative names 1931 YA · 1965 WK Orbital period 12 years Orbits Sun | |
Discovery site Landessternwarte Heidelberg-Königstuhl Similar 1207 Ostenia, 911 Agamemnon, Jupiter trojan, 617 Patroclus, 588 Achilles | ||
1208 Troilus, provisional designation 1931 YA, is a heavily tilted, large and dark Jupiter trojan, about 103 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered by German astronomer Karl Reinmuth at Heidelberg Observatory in southern Germany on 31 December 1931.
The carbonaceous asteroid has a relatively rare F-type spectrum, classified as a FCU-type in the Tholen taxonomy system. It orbits the Sun at a distance of 4.8–5.7 AU once every 12.03 years (4,394 days). Its orbit shows an eccentricity of 0.09 and is significantly inclined by 34 degrees to the plane of the ecliptic. It has a rotation period of 56 hours with a more recent but provisional 2014-measurement of 63 hours. The body's albedo amounts to 0.04, according to the surveys carried out by the space-spaced missions, IRAS, Akari, and WISE/NEOWISE.
The minor planet was named after the young Trojan prince Troilus, from Greek mythology. He is the son of King Priam (also see 884 Priamus), who in a medieval legend loved Cressida (see 548 Kressida) and lost her to Diomedes (see 1437 Diomedes). Troilus was killed by Achilles (see 588 Achilles) in the Trojan War.