1102 Pepita

1102 Pepita, provisional designation 1928 VA, is a stony background asteroid from the outer regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 39 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 5 November 1928, by Catalan astronomer Josep Comas i Solà at the Fabra Observatory in Barcelona, Spain.^[14] It was named after the discoverer by the feminine form of his nickname.^[2] The asteroid has a rotation period of 5.1 hours.^[3]

1102 Pepita

Lightcurve-based 3D-model of Pepita
Discovery[1]
Discovered by	J. Comas Solà
Discovery site	Fabra Obs.
Discovery date	5 November 1928
Designations
MPC designation	(1102) Pepita
Named after	Josep Comas i Solà[2] (discoverer himself)
Alternative designations	1928 VA · 1960 WQ A899 KB
Minor planet category	main-belt · (outer)[3] background[4]
Orbital characteristics[1]
Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Observation arc	86.24 yr (31,499 days)
Aphelion	3.4119 AU
Perihelion	2.7311 AU
Semi-major axis	3.0715 AU
Eccentricity	0.1108
Orbital period (sidereal)	5.38 yr (1,966 days)
Mean anomaly	267.80°
Mean motion	0° 10m 59.16s / day
Inclination	15.828°
Longitude of ascending node	216.59°
Argument of perihelion	116.55°
Physical characteristics
Mean diameter	30.88±1.59 km[5] 36.632±0.378 km[6] 39.27±2.1 km[7] 41.02±0.74 km[8] 41.733±0.308 km[9]
Synodic rotation period	5.1±0.1 h[10] 5.1040±0.0003 h[10] 5.10532±0.00005 h[11] 5.1054±0.0002 h[12]
Geometric albedo	0.1842±0.0220[9] 0.188±0.007[8] 0.1991±0.023[7] 0.229±0.054[6] 0.322±0.058[5]
Spectral type	Tholen = C[1] SMASS = S[1][3] B–V = 0.724[1] U–B = 0.424[1]
Absolute magnitude (H)	8.68±0.65[13] 9.40[1][3][5][7][8][9]

Orbit and classification

Pepita is a non-family asteroid from the main belt's background population.^[4] It orbits the Sun in the outer asteroid belt at a distance of 2.7–3.4 AU once every 5 years and 5 months (1,966 days; semi-major axis of 3.07 AU). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.11 and an inclination of 16° with respect to the ecliptic.^[1]

In May 1899, the asteroid was first observed as A899 KB at Harvard's Boyden Station in Arequipa, Peru (800). The body's observation arc begins with its official discovery observation at Barcelona.^[14]

Physical characteristics

In the SMASS classification, Pepita is a stony S-type asteroid, which agrees with the body's measured geometric albedo (see below).^[1][3] Conversely, it is also classified as a carbonaceous C-type asteroid by Tholen.^[1]

Naming

This minor planet was named after the discoverer, Josep Comas i Solà (1868–1937), by the feminine form of his nickname, "Pepito". He was the first director of the discovering Fabra Observatory and founded the Astronomical Society of Spain and America (Spanish: Sociedad Astronomica de España y América, SADEYA).^[2]

The official naming citation was mentioned in The Names of the Minor Planets by Paul Herget in 1955 (H 104).^[2] The asteroid 1655 Comas Solà is also named after him, as is the Martian crater Comas Sola.^[15]