152188 Morricone


152188 Morricone is a background asteroid from the central region of the asteroid belt, approximately in diameter. It was discovered on 27 August 2005, by astronomers Franco Mallia and Alain Maury at the Campo Catino Austral Observatory, San Pedro de Atacama, Chile, a robotic station of the Italian Campo Catino Astronomical Observatory. The asteroid was named for Italian composer Ennio Morricone.

Orbit and classification

When applying the hierarchical clustering method to the asteroid's proper orbital elements, Morricone is both a non-family asteroid from the main belt's background population, and a distant member of the Eunomia family. It orbits the Sun in the central asteroid belt at a distance of 2.1–3.0 AU once every 4 years and 1 month. Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.18 and an inclination of 15° with respect to the ecliptic.
The body's observation arc begins with its observation by AMOS at Haleakala Observatory in August 2001, or four years prior to its official discovery observation by CAO at San Pedro de Atacama in Chile.

Physical characteristics

The asteroid's spectral type is unknown.

Diameter and albedo

Morricone has not been observed by any of the space-based surveys such as the Infrared Astronomical Satellite IRAS, the Japanese Akari satellite or the NEOWISE mission of NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer. Based on a generic magnitude-to-diameter conversion, the asteroid measures 2.3 and 4.2 kilometers in diameter based on an absolute magnitude of 15.6 and a geometric albedo of 0.06 and 0.20, which roughly correspond to a body of carbonaceous and stony composition, respectively.

Rotation period

As of 2018, no rotational lightcurve of Morricone has been obtained from photometric observations. The body's rotation period, shape and poles remain unknown.

Naming

This minor planet was named after Italian composer Ennio Morricone, who wrote over 500 scores for cinema and television, including several famous Spaghetti Westerns. The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 1 June 2007.