110393 Rammstein

110393 Rammstein (provisional designation 2001 TC₈) is a background asteroid from the central region of the asteroid belt, approximately 4 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 11 October 2001, by French astronomer Jean-Claude Merlin at the Le Creusot Observatory in France. The asteroid was named after the German industrial metal band Rammstein.^[2]

110393 Rammstein

Discovery[1][2]
Discovered by	J.-C. Merlin
Discovery site	Le Creusot Obs.
Discovery date	11 October 2001
Designations
MPC designation	(110393) Rammstein
Named after	Rammstein[2] (industrial metal band)
Alternative designations	2001 TC8
Minor planet category	main-belt · (middle) background[3]
Orbital characteristics[1]
Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Observation arc	15.62 yr (5,704 days)
Aphelion	2.9427 AU
Perihelion	2.4774 AU
Semi-major axis	2.7101 AU
Eccentricity	0.0859
Orbital period (sidereal)	4.46 yr (1,630 days)
Mean anomaly	167.18°
Mean motion	0° 13m 15.24s / day
Inclination	12.164°
Longitude of ascending node	217.13°
Argument of perihelion	222.53°
Physical characteristics
Mean diameter	3.0 km (est. at 0.20)[4] 5.5 km (est. at 0.06)[4]
Absolute magnitude (H)	15.0[1]

Orbit and classification

Rammstein is a non-family asteroid from the main belt's background population.^[3] It orbits the Sun in the central asteroid belt at a distance of 2.5–2.9 AU once every 4 years and 6 months (1,630 days; semi-major axis of 2.71 AU). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.09 and an inclination of 12° with respect to the ecliptic.^[1]

The body's observation arc begins with its first observation made by LONEOS at Lowell Observatory in September 2001, less than a month prior to its official discovery observation at Le Creusot.^[2] A telescope is required to see Rammstein, as its maximum brightness is 1⁄48193 of the brightness of the faintest objects that can be seen with the unaided eye.^[5]

Physical characteristics

The asteroid's spectral type is unknown.^[1]

Diameter and albedo

Rammstein has not been observed by any of the space-based surveys such as the Infrared Astronomical Satellite IRAS, the Japanese Akari satellite or the NEOWISE mission of NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer. Based on a generic magnitude-to-diameter conversion, the asteroid measures 3.0 and 5.5 kilometers in diameter based on an absolute magnitude of 15.0 and a geometric albedo of 0.20 and 0.06, which roughly correspond to a body of carbonaceous and stony composition, respectively (both types are common in the central asteroid belt).^[2][4] The Minor Planet Center (MPC) similarly estimates the object's mean diameter to be between 3 and 6 kilometers.^[5]

Rotation period

As of 2018, no rotational lightcurve of Rammstein has been obtained from photometric observations. The body's rotation period, shape and poles remain unknown.^[1][6]

Naming

This minor planet was named after the German NDH-Metal band Rammstein, which in turn took its name from the city of Ramstein after the tragic 1988 air show disaster at Ramstein Air Base.^[2] The official naming citation was published by the MPC on 19 February 2006 (M.P.C. 55989).^[7]