2815 Soma

2815 Soma

Discovery [1]
Discovered by	E. Bowell
Discovery site	Anderson Mesa Station
Discovery date	15 September 1982
Designations
MPC designation	2815 Soma
Named after	Soma cube[2]
Alternative names	1982 RL · 1955 MH 1970 AC · 1974 DL 1979 XB1
Minor planet category	main-belt
Orbital characteristics [1]
Epoch 13 January 2016 (JD 2457400.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Observation arc	60.41 yr (22065 days)
Aphelion	2.6113 AU (390.64 Gm)
Perihelion	1.8545 AU (277.43 Gm)
Semi-major axis	2.2329 AU (334.04 Gm)
Eccentricity	0.16947
Orbital period	3.34 yr (1218.7 d)
Mean anomaly	351.20°
Mean motion	0° 17^m 43.404^s / day
Inclination	5.7047°
Longitude of ascending node	119.88°
Argument of perihelion	237.56°
Known satellites	1[3]
Earth MOID	0.855352 AU (127.9588 Gm)
Jupiter MOID	2.8225 AU (422.24 Gm)
Jupiter Tisserand parameter	3.615
Physical characteristics
Rotation period	2.73325 h (0.113885 d)
Absolute magnitude (H)	12.6

2815 Soma (1982 RL) is a main-belt asteroid discovered on September 15, 1982 by E. Bowell at Anderson Mesa Station in Flagstaff, Arizona, USA.^[1]

Soma is named after the Soma cube, a three-dimensional mathematical game invented by the Danish writer Piet Hein and popularized in articles by Martin Gardner.^[2]

A moon was discovered around the asteroid in 2011 from lightcurve observations, with a diameter of 1.74 ± 0.14 km.^[3]

References

1. "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 2815 Soma (1982 RL)" (2015-07-14 last obs.). Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 15 April 2016.
2. "Dictionary of Minor Planet Names – (2815) Soma". Springer Berlin Heidelberg. 2007. p. 231. Retrieved October 2015.
3. Johnston, Robert. "(2815) Soma". johnstonsarchive.net. Retrieved 28 May 2015.

External links

• "2815 Soma (1982 RL)". JPL Small-Body Database. Jet Propulsion Laboratory. SPK-ID: 2002815.
• 2815 Soma at the JPL Small-Body Database

• Discovery · Orbit diagram · Orbital elements · Physical parameters