1924 Horus
1924 Horus, provisional designation, is a dark asteroid from the inner regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 12 kilometers in diameter. Discovered during the Palomar–Leiden survey in 1960, it was later named after Horus from Egyptian mythology.Orbit and classification
Horus was discovered on 24 September 1960, by Cornelis Johannes van Houten and Ingrid van Houten-Groeneveld at Leiden, on photographic plates taken by Tom Gehrels at Palomar. On the same date, the trio of astronomers also discovered 1912 Anubis, 1923 Osiris and 5011 Ptah.
The survey designation "P-L" stands for Palomar–Leiden, named after Palomar Observatory and Leiden Observatory, which collaborated on the fruitful Palomar–Leiden survey in the 1960s. Gehrels used Palomar's Samuel Oschin telescope, and shipped the photographic plates to Ingrid and Cornelis van Houten at Leiden Observatory where astrometry was carried out. The trio are credited with the discovery of :Category:Discoveries by the Palomar–Leiden survey|several thousand asteroid discoveries.Physical characteristics
According to the survey carried out by NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer with its subsequent NEOWISE mission, Horus measures 12.986 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo of 0.070. The body has a rotation period of 6.183 hours.Naming
This minor planet was named after Horus, the falcon-headed king of the sky and the stars, and son of the Egyptian god Osiris. The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 1 November 1979.
