2017 VR12
Discovered on November 10, 2017 by Pan-STARRS 1, Haleakala. Included in the list of the "Potentially Hazardous Asteroids" of the Minor Planet Center.
Orbital and Physical Characteristics
| Epoch | 2018 Mar 23 |
| Mean Anomaly | 8.89317° |
| Argument of Perihelion | 180.74434° |
| Longitude of Ascending Node | 347.31606° |
| Inclination | 9.22415° |
| Eccentricity | 0.2695614 |
| Semimajor Axis | 1.3696339 AU |
| Orbital Period | 1.6 years |
MOID |
0.0077353 AU |
| Orbit type | Amor |
| Absolute Magnitude | 20.5 |
| Diameter | 138 m [1] |
| Rotation period | 1.378 ± 0.03 h [2] |
Radar scattering properties
SC/OC |
0.34 [1] |
| Radar albedo | 0.32 [1] |
Close Approach to the Earth
| Date of encounter | 2018 Mar 7 |
| Distance | 0.0097 AU (3.8 lunar distances) |
Observation Schedule
| Date | Window, UT | Receiver |
Transmitter |
Frequency, MHz |
λ, cm |
Ptx, kW |
R, au |
RTT, sec |
SNR/RTT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 Mar 5 | 3:40 - 5:30 | RT-32 (Sv, Zc) | DSS-14 [3] | 8560.0 | 3.5 | 100 - 150 | 0.012 | 12 | 6 |
| 3:40 - 5:08 | RT-32 (Bd) |
Echo power spectrum
Bistatic DSS-14/RT-32 continuous wave echo power spectra of 2017 VR12 obtained at Zelenchukskaya and Badary observatories on March 5, 2018 from 4:16 to 4:25 UT. Solid and dashed lines denote echo power in the opposite circular (OC) and same circular (SC) polarizations as that of the transmitted wave.
Remarks
Kornienko, G. et al., Ussuriysk Astrophysical Observatory, 2018.
We thank L. A. Benner, S. Naidu, M. Brozovic and the technical staff at Goldstone for the help with the radar observations.