10 Hygiea

10 Hygiea
Hygiea's southern hemisphere imaged by the Very Large Telescope in July 2017
Discovery[1]
Discovered byAnnibale de Gasparis
Discovery siteAstronomical Observatory of Capodimonte
Discovery date12 April 1849
Designations
(10) Hygiea
Pronunciation/hˈə/[2]
Named after
Hygieia
Alternative designations
A849 GA · A900 GA
Minor planet category
Main belt (middle) · Hygiea family
AdjectivesHygiean /hˈən/[3]
Symbol (historical astronomical), (modern astrological)
Orbital characteristics[1]
Epoch 5 May 2025 (JD 2460800.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Aphelion3.488 AU (522 million km)
Perihelion2.799 AU (419 million km)
3.144 AU (470 million km)
Eccentricity0.1096
5.57 yr (2,036 days)
181.38°
Mean motion
0° 10m 36.588s / day
Inclination3.832° to ecliptic
283.13°
9 February 2028
Argument of perihelion
312.71°
Proper orbital elements[4]
3.1418 AU
0.1356
5.1039°
Proper mean motion
64.6218 deg / yr
5.57088 yr
(2034.762 d)
Precession of perihelion
128.544 arcsec / yr
Precession of the ascending node
−96.9024 arcsec / yr
Physical characteristics
Dimensions450 km × 430 km × 424 km
 10 km × 10 km × 20 km)[5]: 18 
Mean diameter
433±8 km (2021)[5]: 6 
434±14 km (2020)[6]: 136 
Flattening0.06±0.05[a]
Mass(8.74±0.69)×1019 kg (2021)[5]: 6 
(8.32±0.80)×1019 kg (2020)[6]: 137 
Mean density
2.06±0.20 g/cm3 (2021)[5]: 6 
1.944±0.250 g/cm3 (2020)[6]: 137 
Equatorial surface gravity
0.12 m/s2 (average)
Equatorial escape velocity
0.229 m/s (average)
Sidereal rotation period
13.82559±0.00005 h[6]: 136 [5]: 18 
120° to ecliptic[5]: 18 
North pole right ascension
319°±[6]: 136 
North pole declination
−46°±[6]: 136 
Pole ecliptic longitude
306°±[5]: 18 
Pole ecliptic latitude
−29°±[5]: 18 
Geometric albedo
0.063 (2021)[5]: 6 
0.072 (2020)[6]: 139 
Surface temp. min mean max
Kelvin ≈100[7] 163[7] 230±5[8][9]
C[1]
9.0 to 12.0[10]
5.65[1]
Angular diameter
0.321″ to 0.133″

10 Hygiea is a large asteroid located in the outer main asteroid belt between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. It was the tenth known asteroid, discovered on 12 April 1849 by Italian astronomer Annibale de Gasparis at the Astronomical Observatory of Capodimonte in Naples, Italy. It was named after Hygieia, the Greek goddess of health. It is the fourth-largest main-belt asteroid by both volume and mass, with a mean diameter of 433 km (269 mi) and a mass constituting 3% of the main asteroid belt's total mass.

Hygiea has a nearly spherical shape, with two known craters about 100 and 180 km (62 and 112 mi) in diameter. Because of its shape and large size, some researchers consider Hygiea a possible dwarf planet. Hygiea has a dark, carbonaceous surface consisting of hydrated and ammoniated silicate minerals, with carbonates and water ice. Hygiea's subsurface likely contains a large fraction of water ice. These characteristics make Hygiea very similar to the main-belt dwarf planet Ceres, which suggests the two objects have similar origins and evolutionary histories.[11]: 2 

Hygiea is the parent body of the Hygiea family, an asteroid family comprising over 7,000 known asteroids that share similar orbital and compositional characteristics with Hygiea.[12] The Hygiea family is believed to have formed by a giant impact on Hygiea about 2 to 3 billion years ago.[13] This impact is thought to have shattered Hygiea, which led to its reaccumulation as a nearly spherical body.

  1. ^ a b c d Cite error: The named reference jpldata was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "Hygeia". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  3. ^ "hygeian". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference AstDyS-proper was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Cite error: The named reference Vernazza2021 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ a b c d e f g Cite error: The named reference Vernazza2020 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Johnston1989 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference Barucci2002 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference Lim2005 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference MPC-object was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference Rivkin2025 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference eso1918 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference Carruba2014 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).


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