Discovered by K. Sárneczky
Z. Heiner MPC designation 95179 Berkó Minor planet category main-belt Absolute magnitude 16.6 Discovery site Piszkéstető Station | Discovery date 16 January 2002 Alternative names 2002 BO Discovered 16 January 2002 Orbits Sun Asteroid group Asteroid belt | |
Named after Ernő Berkó
(amateur astronomer) Discoverers Zsuzsanna Heiner, Krisztián Sárneczky Similar Solar System, Asteroid belt, Sun | ||
95179 Berkó, provisional designation 2002 BO, is an asteroid from the inner regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 2 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 16 January 2002, by Hungarian astronomers Krisztián Sárneczky and Zsuzsanna Heiner at the Konkoly Observatory's Piszkéstető Station northeast of Budapest, Hungary.
The asteroid has a well-observed orbit with the lowest possible uncertainty of 0. It orbits the Sun at a distance of 1.9–2.9 AU once every 3 years and 9 months (1,354 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.20 and an inclination of 2° with respect to the ecliptic. The first observation was made at Lincoln Laboratory's Experimental Test Site in 2000, extending the body's observation arc by 2 years prior to its discovery. As of 2016, the asteroid's effective size, its composition and albedo, as well as its rotation period remain unknown.
Based on an absolute magnitude of 16.5, the asteroid is calculated to measure between 1 and 3 kilometers in diameter, assuming an albedo in the range of 0.05 to 0.25. Since asteroids in the inner main-belt are often of a silicaceous rather than of a carbonaceous composition, with higher albedos, typically around 0.20, the asteroid's diameter might be on the lower end of NASA's published conversion table, as the higher the body's reflectivity (albedo), the smaller its diameter, for a given absolute magnitude (brightness).
The minor planet is named in honor of Hungarian amateur astronomer Ernő Berkó (b. 1955), independent discoverer of the supernova 1999by and an observer of deep-sky objects and double stars. As of 2006, he has contributed to the WDS catalog with the discovery of more than 160 double stars. Naming citation was published on 6 January 2007 (M.P.C. 58597).