Discovered by L. Zhuravleva MPC designation 2423 Ibarruri Discovered 14 July 1972 Orbits Sun | Discovery date 14 July 1972 Minor planet category Mars-crosser Absolute magnitude 13.2 | |
Alternative names 1972 NC · 1930 SV1943 TB · 1956 VC1972 PB People also search for 2055 Dvořák, 2044 Wirt, 2099 Öpik | ||
2423 Ibarruri, provisional designation 1972 NC, is an eccentric, slow tumbling asteroid and Mars-crosser from the inner regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 5 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered by Russian–Ukrainian astronomer Lyudmila Zhuravleva at the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory in Nauchnyj, on 14 July 1972.
The spectral type of the asteroid is that of a rare A-type in the SMASS taxonomy, with its surface consisting of almost pure olivine, which gives the body a very reddish color. As of November 2015, only 17 minor planets of this type are known. It orbits the Sun at a distance of 1.6–2.8 AU once every 3 years and 3 months (1,183 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.28 and an inclination of 4° with respect to the ecliptic.
Ibarruri has a notably slow rotation period of 140 hours, and seems to be in a non-principal axis rotation (NPAR), colloquially called as "tumbling". As a spectroscopic A-type asteroid, it belongs to the larger group of bodies with a silicaceous composition. However, the Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link classifies the asteroid into the carbonaceous group, despite the fact that is assumes a relatively high geometric albedo of 0.20, which is rather typical for stony asteroids.
The minor planet was named after Rubén Ruiz Ibárruri (1920–1942), son of Spanish communist leader Dolores Ibárruri and a posthumous Hero of the Soviet Union. He enlisted in the Soviet army and died in the early stage of the Battle of Stalingrad in September 1942. Naming citation was published on 8 February 1982 (M.P.C. 6649).