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J. L. Margot (California Institute of Technology), M. C. Nolan, E. S. Howell, A. A. Hine (Arecibo Observatory), P. D. Nicholson, D. B. Campbell (Cornell University), J. D. Giorgini, S. R. Chesley, L. A. M. Benner, S. J. Ostro (Jet Propulsion Laboratory), R. S. Hudson (Washington State University), P. Pravec (Astronomical Institute, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic), D. Vokrouhlický (Institute of Astronomy, Charles University, Czech Republic)
The minor planet 2000 PH5 (MPEC 2000-P32) is a very interesting object for the study of peculiar dynamical phenomena. Margot and Nicholson [2003] have shown that 2000 PH5 is in a Sun-Earth horseshoe orbit with orbital parameters that may suggest an origin in the Earth-Moon system. D. Vokrouhlický has suggested that 2000 PH5 may be an excellent candidate for detecting the evolution of asteroid spin states due to thermal reemission of sunlight (YORP effect) [Vokrouhlický and Capek, 2002]. We observed 2000 PH5 with the Goldstone radar in 2001 and determined that it was a fast rotator with an equivalent diameter of about 150~m. Four observing sessions at Arecibo on 2003 Jul 28-31 will allow us to obtain images at ~10~m resolution with good rotational coverage. We will apply asteroid radar astronomy techniques [Ostro, 1993] and shape modeling techniques [Hudson, 1993] to obtain the best possible characterization of this minor planet. Our objectives are 1) to measure reflection properties to help constrain a possible source region, 2) to obtain precise radar astrometry to refine the orbital history of this object, 3) to determine the orientation of the spin vector to allow lightcurve data obtained at several apparitions to be linked, 4) to obtain a detailed shape model for morphological studies and modeling of the YORP effect.
References\\ Hudson, Remote Sensing Reviews, 8, 1993.\\ Margot and Nicholson, AAS/Division of Dynamical Astronomy, 34, 2003.\\ Ostro, Reviews of Modern Physics, 65, 1993.\\ Vokrouhlický and Capek, Icarus, 159, 2002.\\
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Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 35 #4
© 2003. The American Astronomical Soceity.