# 24101 Cassini

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'*24101 Cassini**([provisional designation](/source/Minor_planet_provisional_designation) '***) is an eccentric background [asteroid](/source/Asteroid) from the middle region of the [asteroid belt](/source/Asteroid_belt), approximately 7 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 9 November 1999, by American amateur astronomer [Charles Juels](/source/Charles_Juels) at the Fountain Hills Observatory in Arizona, United States.[8] It was named after Italian–French astronomer [Giovanni Cassini](/source/Giovanni_Cassini).

## Orbit and classification

Cassini is a non-[family](/source/Asteroid_family) from the main belt's [background population](/source/Background_asteroid). It orbits the Sun in the [central](/source/Kirkwood_gap) asteroid belt at a distance of 1.8–3.5 [AU](/source/Astronomical_unit) once every 4 years and 4 months (1,571 days). Its orbit has an [eccentricity](/source/Orbital_eccentricity) of 0.31 and an [inclination](/source/Orbital_inclination) of 15[°](/source/Degree_(angle)) with respect to the [ecliptic](/source/Ecliptic).[6]

In December 1926, the asteroid was first identified as at [Heidelberg Observatory](/source/Heidelberg_Observatory) in Germany. The body's [observation arc](/source/Observation_arc) begins 7 years prior to its official discovery observation, with a [precovery](/source/Precovery) taken at [La Silla Observatory](/source/La_Silla_Observatory) in March 1992.[8]

## Physical characteristics

### Lightcurve

In February 2009, two rotational [lightcurves](/source/Lightcurve) of Cassini were obtained from photometric observations by Italian astronomer [Silvano Casulli](/source/Silvano_Casulli), and at the private Shed of Science Observatory ([H39](/source/IAU_code#H39)) in Minnesota, United States. Lightcurve analysis gave a well-defined, concurring [rotation period](/source/Rotation_period) of 3.986 hours with a brightness variation of 0.12 [magnitude](/source/Magnitude_(astronomy)) ([U=3/-3](/source/LCDB_quality_code)).[5][a]

### Diameter and albedo

According to observations carried out by the [NEOWISE](/source/NEOWISE) mission of NASA's space-based [Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer](/source/Wide-field_Infrared_Survey_Explorer), Cassini measures 7.051 kilometer in diameter and its surface has an [albedo](/source/Astronomical_albedo) of 0.2458.[3]

The *Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link* assumes an albedo of 0.10 – a compromise value between the brighter [stony](/source/S-type_asteroid) (0.20) and darker [carbonaceous](/source/C-type_asteroid) (0.057) asteroids of the 2.6 to 2.7 AU-region of the asteroid belt – and correspondingly, calculates a larger diameter of 11.05 kilometers, as the lower a body's albedo (reflectivity), the larger its diameter for a given [absolute magnitude](/source/Absolute_magnitude) (brightness).[2]

## Naming

This [minor planet](/source/Minor_planet) was named in honor of Italian-born French astronomer [Giovanni Cassini](/source/Giovanni_Cassini) (1625–1712), who was the first director of the [Paris Observatory](/source/Paris_Observatory) from 1671 until his death. He discovered the four [moons of Saturn](/source/Moons_of_Saturn) – [Iapetus](/source/Iapetus_(moon)), [Rhea](/source/Rhea_(moon)), [Tethys](/source/Tethys_(moon)) and [Dione](/source/Dione_(moon)) – the major gap in its rings, known as [Cassini Division](/source/Cassini_Division), and was the first to write down observations of the [zodiacal light](/source/Zodiacal_light). The [Cassini–Huygens](/source/Cassini%E2%80%93Huygens) spacecraft is named after him and [Christiaan Huygens](/source/Christiaan_Huygens).[1]

The [lunar](/source/Cassini_(lunar_crater)) and [Martian](/source/Cassini_(Martian_crater)) craters Cassini are also named in his honor. The approved naming citation was published by the [Minor Planet Center](/source/Minor_Planet_Center) on 21 September 2002 ([M.P.C.](/source/Minor_Planet_Circulars) 46684).[9]

## References

1. Durkee (2011): rotation period 3.986 ± 0.001 hours with a brightness amplitude of 0.12 mag. Summary figures for (24101) Cassini at [Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link (CALL)](http://www.minorplanet.info/PHP/generateOneAsteroidInfo.php?AstInfo=24101%7CCassini) and at [Shed of Science (S.O.S.) Observatory](http://home.earthlink.net/~shedofscience/index.html)

## References

1. Schmadel, Lutz D. (2007). "(24101) Cassini". *Dictionary of Minor Planet Names*. [Springer Berlin Heidelberg](/source/Springer_Berlin_Heidelberg). p. 873. [doi:10.1007/978-3-540-29925-7_9763](https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-29925-7_9763). ISBN 978-3-540-00238-3.

1. No. 24101. Retrieved 17 May 2016.

1. Mainzer, A.; Grav, T.; Masiero, J.; Hand, E.; Bauer, J.; Tholen, D. et al. (November 2011). ["NEOWISE Studies of Spectrophotometrically Classified Asteroids: Preliminary Results"](http://adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/bib_query?bibcode=2011ApJ...741...90M). *The Astrophysical Journal*. **741** (2): 25. [arXiv:1109.6407](https://arxiv.org/abs/1109.6407). [Bibcode:2011ApJ...741...90M](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2011ApJ...741...90M). [doi:10.1088/0004-637X/741/2/90](https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/741/2/90). [S2CID 35447010](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:35447010). Retrieved 17 May 2016.

1. Masiero, Joseph R.; Mainzer, A. K.; Grav, T.; Bauer, J. M.; Cutri, R. M.; Dailey, J. et al. (November 2011). ["Main Belt Asteroids with WISE/NEOWISE. I. Preliminary Albedos and Diameters"](http://adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/bib_query?bibcode=2011ApJ...741...68M). *The Astrophysical Journal*. **741** (2): 20. [arXiv:1109.4096](https://arxiv.org/abs/1109.4096). [Bibcode:2011ApJ...741...68M](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2011ApJ...741...68M). [doi:10.1088/0004-637X/741/2/68](https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/741/2/68). [S2CID 118745497](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:118745497). Retrieved 2 December 2016.

1. Behrend, Raoul. ["Asteroids and comets rotation curves – (24101) Cassini"](http://obswww.unige.ch/~behrend/page5cou.html#024101). [Geneva Observatory](/source/Geneva_Observatory). Retrieved 17 May 2016.

1. ["JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 24101 Cassini (1999 VA9)"](https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=2024101) (2017-02-09 last obs.). [Jet Propulsion Laboratory](/source/Jet_Propulsion_Laboratory). Retrieved 27 June 2017.

1. Veres, Peter; Jedicke, Robert; Fitzsimmons, Alan; Denneau, Larry; Granvik, Mikael; Bolin, Bryce et al. (November 2015). ["Absolute magnitudes and slope parameters for 250,000 asteroids observed by Pan-STARRS PS1 - Preliminary results"](http://adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/bib_query?bibcode=2015Icar..261...34V). *Icarus*. **261**: 34–47. [arXiv:1506.00762](https://arxiv.org/abs/1506.00762). [Bibcode:2015Icar..261...34V](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2015Icar..261...34V). [doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2015.08.007](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.icarus.2015.08.007). [S2CID 53493339](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:53493339). Retrieved 17 May 2016.

1. ["24101 Cassini (1999 VA9)"](https://www.minorplanetcenter.net/db_search/show_object?object_id=24101). *Minor Planet Center*. Retrieved 31 January 2016.

1. ["MPC/MPO/MPS Archive"](https://www.minorplanetcenter.net/iau/ECS/MPCArchive/MPCArchive_TBL.html). *Minor Planet Center*. Retrieved 17 May 2016.

## External links

- [Asteroid Lightcurve Database (LCDB)](http://www.minorplanet.info/PHP/lcdbsummaryquery.php), query form ([info](http://www.minorplanet.info/lightcurvedatabase.html) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20171216050541/http://www.minorplanet.info/lightcurvedatabase.html) 16 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine)
- [Dictionary of Minor Planet Names](https://books.google.com/books?id=aeAg1X7afOoC&pg), Google books
- [Asteroids and comets rotation curves, CdR](http://obswww.unige.ch/~behrend/page_cou.html) – Observatoire de Genève, Raoul Behrend
- [Discovery Circumstances: Numbered Minor Planets (20001)-(25000)](https://www.minorplanetcenter.net/iau/lists/NumberedMPs020001.html) – Minor Planet Center

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [24101 Cassini](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/24101_Cassini) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/24101_Cassini?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.