Alternative names 1947 HA Observation arc 124.07 yr (45318 d) Discovered 1 July 1884 | Discovery date 1 July 1884 Minor planet category Main belt Aphelion 3.1652 AU (473.51 Gm) Orbits Sun | |
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Similar 423 Diotima, 360 Carlova, 95 Arethusa, 56 Melete, 230 Athamantis | ||
238 Hypatia is a very large main-belt asteroid that was discovered by Russian astronomer Viktor Knorre on July 1, 1884, in Berlin. It was the third of his four asteroid discoveries. The name was given in honour of philosopher Hypatia of Alexandria. Based upon the spectrum, it is classified as a C-type asteroid and is probably composed of primitive carbonaceous material. Like many asteroids of this type, its surface is very dark in colour.
Photometric observations of this asteroid at the European Southern Observatory in 1981 gave a light curve with a period of 8.9 ± 0.1 hours and a brightness variation of 0.12 in magnitude.
References
238 Hypatia Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA