Discovered by L. Oterma MPC designation 2064 Thomsen Discovered 8 September 1942 Orbits Sun Discovery site Iso-Heikkilä Observatory | Discovery date 8 September 1942 Absolute magnitude 13.1 | |
Named after Ivan Leslie Thomsen(astronomer) Alternative names 1942 RQ · 1958 RO1974 OK · 1977 FE31977 KA · A913 QB Similar 2058 Róka, 1865 Cerberus, 2062 Aten, Solar System, Sun | ||
2064 Thomsen, provisional designation 1942 RQ, is a stony, eccentric asteroid classified as Mars-crosser, approximately 13 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered by Finnish astronomer Liisi Oterma at Turku Observatory, Finland, on 8 September 1942.
The S-type asteroid orbits the Sun at a distance of 1.5–2.9 AU once every 3 years and 3 months (1,175 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.33 and an inclination of 6° with respect to the ecliptic. Four rotational light-curves gave a well-defined rotation period of 4.233 hours with a brightness variation of 0.62–0.69 magnitude (U=3/3/ .a./3) and an albedo of 0.055 and 0.16, as measured by the IRAS and Akari surveys, respectively.
It was named in memory of New Zealand astronomer Ivan Leslie Thomsen (1910–1969), director of the Carter Observatory, Wellington, from 1945 until he was appointed director of the Mount John University Observatory only two months before his death. He was an enthusiastic coordinator of New Zealand's astronomy and his efforts eventually led to the minor-planet observing program with the Carter Observatory 41-cm reflector. It was the 1977 rediscovery at the Carter Observatory that allowed this minor planet to be numbered. Naming citation was published before November 1977 (M.P.C. 4421).