Discovered by E. W. Elst MPC designation 14832 Alechinsky Minor planet category main-belt · Flora Orbits Sun Asteroid family Flora family Asteroid group Asteroid belt | Discovery date 27 August 1987 Alternative names 1987 QC3 · 1994 PY32 Discovered 27 August 1987 Discoverer Eric Walter Elst Discovery site La Silla Observatory | |
Named after Pierre Alechinsky
(painter) People also search for Sun, 8 Flora, 915 Cosette, 967 Helionape, 3412 Kafka, 428 Monachia | ||
14832 Alechinsky, provisional designation 1987 QC3, is a stony Flora asteroid from the inner regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 4 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 27 August 1987, by Belgian astronomer Eric Elst at ESO's La Silla Observatory site in northern Chile.
The S-type asteroid is a member of the Flora family, one of the largest groups of stony asteroids in the main-belt. It orbits the Sun at a distance of 2.0–2.6 AU once every 3 years and 6 months (1,268 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.12 and an inclination of 6° with respect to the ecliptic. The asteroid's observation arc begins in 1987, as no precoveries had been taken prior to its discovery.
According to the survey carried out by the NEOWISE mission of NASA's space-based Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, the asteroid measures 4.4 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo of 0.194, while the Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes an albedo of 0.24 – which derives from 8 Flora, the largest member and namesake of this orbital family – and calculates a diameter of 3.9 kilometers, based on an absolute magnitude of 14.2.
In February 2013, two rotational light-curves of this asteroid were obtained from photometric observations made at the U.S. Palomar Transient Factory, California. They gave a rotation period of 7000807000000000000♠8.07±0.02 and 7000958310000000000♠9.5831±0.1453 hours, with a brightness variation of 0.98 and 1.30 in magnitude, respectively (U=2+/2). Such a high amplitude in magnitude typically indicates that the body has an elongated shape.
The minor planet was named in honor of Belgian painter and internationally prominent 20th century artist, Pierre Alechinsky (b. 1927), known for his treatment of colors, versatility and graphic humor. He was a member of the expressionist art group and avant-garde movement CoBrA, a name which was coined from the initials of the members' home cities: Copenhagen, Brussels, and Amsterdam. Naming citation was published on 13 October 2000 (M.P.C. 41387).