916 America facts for kids
| Discovery | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | G. N. Neujmin |
| Discovery date | 7 August 1915 |
| Designations | |
| MPC designation | 1915 S1 |
| Orbital characteristics | |
| Epoch 27 October 2007 (JDCT 2454400.5) | |
| Aphelion | 2.922 AU |
| Perihelion | 1.807 AU |
| 2.365 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.236 |
| 3.64 a | |
| Inclination | 11.097° |
| 329.84° | |
| 41.538° | |
916 America is a minor planet that is orbiting the Sun in the main belt between Mars and Jupiter.
It was discovered on 7 August 1915 by the Soviet astronomer Grigory Nikolaevich Neujmin at Simeis, Ukraine. It was originally called 916ΣI, but was renamed 916 America on 24 February 1923 after the Council of Astronomers at Pulkovo Observatory decided to pay tribute to "the friendly relations of the astronomical observatories and astronomers". Another possible reason for the name was as a mark of thankfulness for the help given during the famine in Crimea by the American Relief Administration under President Herbert Hoover.
In 1986, believing that the asteroid was of S-type and that it had a diameter of 15 km, the length of 916 America's day was thought to be 38 hours. Observations by the Infrared Astronomical Satellite have since shown that it has a diameter of 33.2±1.3 km, with an absolute magnitude of 11.20 and an albedo (the extent to which it reflects light) of 0.053±0.004.
