513 Centesima


513 Centesima is a 50 km Main-belt asteroid orbiting the Sun. It is one of the core members of the Eos family of asteroids. Relatively little is known about this tiny asteroid. It is not known to possess any natural satellites, so its mass is unknown. However, its brief rotation period of just over 5 hours implies that the body must be exceptionally dense, for its gravity is able counteract the centrifugal force. It was discovered 24 August 1903 by late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century astronomer Max Wolf.

History

Centesima was discovered on 24 August 1903 by astronomer Max Wolf at Heidelberg Observatory, where it was given the old-style provisional designation. The asteroid then received its permanent number by 1905, and was given the name Centesima by 1907. The name commemorates the asteroid as Wolf's 100th minor planet discovery.
In 1925, the old-style minor planet provisional designation scheme was replaced by the system currently in use. the Minor Planet Center has since retroactively applied the new-style system to pre-1925 designations. Thus, Centesima's provisional designation given upon its discovery was changed to.

Orbit

Centesima orbits the Sun at an average distance—its semi-major axis—of 3.01 astronomical units, taking 5.23 years to complete one revolution. Along its orbit, its distance from the Sun varies between 2.75 AU at perihelion to 3.28 AU at aphelion due to its orbital eccentricity of 0.087. Its orbit is inclined by 9.73° with respect to the ecliptic plane. It is a member of the Eos family, a vast and ancient asteroid family located in the outer main belt.

Physical characteristics

Centesima is estimated to be in size. It is classified as an S-type asteroid in the Tholen classification scheme, and a K-type asteroid in the Small Main-belt Asteroid Spectroscopic Survey, Phase II classification scheme. Based on observations of its lightcurve, or variations in its observed brightness, Centesima has a rotation period of 4.79 hours.