1044 Teutonia


1044 Teutonia, provisional designation, is a stony asteroid from the central regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 16 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 10 May 1924, by astronomer Karl Reinmuth at Heidelberg Observatory in southwest Germany. The asteroid was named after the land inhabited by the Teutonic people.

Classification and orbit

Teutonia orbits the Sun in the central main-belt at a distance of 2.2–2.9 AU once every 4 years and 2 months. Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.14 and an inclination of 4° with respect to the ecliptic.
The asteroid's observation arc begin 17 years prior to its official discovery observation, with its first identification as at Taunton Observatory ( in March 1907.

Physical characteristics

Lightcurves

Images of the object made during 2007 were used to produce a light curve that gave a synodic period of 2.84 ± 0.04 h. However, a study made in 2006 gave a period of 3.153 ± 0.003, which can not yet be ruled out. The brightness of the object varied by 0.20 ± 0.03 in magnitude over the course of each rotation.

Diameter and albedo

According to the surveys carried out by the Infrared Astronomical Satellite IRAS, the Japanese Akari satellite, and NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer with its subsequent NEOWISE mission, Teutonia measures between 15.20 and 17.929 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo between 0.2449 and 0.3340. The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link derives an albedo of 0.3613 and a diameter of 15.30 kilometers based on an absolute magnitude of 10.8.

Naming

This minor planet was named for the land once inhabited by the Teutons, a Germanic tribe that lived in what is now Jutland. The name was proposed by astronomer Gustav Stracke.