1637 Swings

1637 Swings, provisional designation 1936 QO, is a dark asteroid from the outer region of the asteroid belt, approximately 50 kilometers in diameter. Discovered by Joseph Hunaerts in 1936, it was named after Belgian astronomer Pol Swings.

1637 Swings

Shape model of Swings from its lightcurve
Discovery[1]
Discovered by	J. Hunaerts
Discovery site	Uccle Obs.
Discovery date	28 August 1936
Designations
MPC designation	(1637) Swings
Named after	Pol Swings (astrophysicist)[2]
Alternative designations	1936 QO · 1907 YT 1934 FL · 1934 FP 1936 SD · 1939 FU 1950 GA
Minor planet category	main-belt · (outer)
Orbital characteristics[1]
Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Observation arc	109.78 yr (40,096 days)
Aphelion	3.2088 AU
Perihelion	2.9356 AU
Semi-major axis	3.0722 AU
Eccentricity	0.0445
Orbital period (sidereal)	5.38 yr (1,967 days)
Mean anomaly	123.47°
Mean motion	0° 10m 58.8s / day
Inclination	14.068°
Longitude of ascending node	21.288°
Argument of perihelion	236.17°
Physical characteristics
Dimensions	45.15 km (IRAS)[3] 52.994±0.428 km[4]
Geometric albedo	0.042±0.004[4]
Absolute magnitude (H)	10.4[1]

Discovery

Swings was discovered on 28 August 1936, by Belgian astronomer Joseph Hunaerts at the Royal Observatory of Belgium in Uccle, Belgium.^[5] In the following month, it was independently discovered by astronomer Cyril Jackson at Johannesburg Observatory in South Africa.^[2]

Orbit and classification

The asteroid orbits the Sun in the outer main-belt at a distance of 2.9–3.2 AU once every 5 years and 5 months (1,967 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.04 and an inclination of 14° with respect to the ecliptic.^[1] In 1907, Swings was first identified as 1907 YT at Heidelberg Observatory. However, the body's observation arc begins with its official discovery observation at Uccle in 1936.^[5]

Physical characteristics

According to the surveys carried out by the Infrared Astronomical Satellite IRAS and NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer with its subsequent NEOWISE mission, Swings' surface has an albedo of 0.042, and measures 45.15 and 52.99 kilometers in diameter, respectively.^[3][4] It has an absolute magnitude of 10.4.^[1]

As of 2017, the body's spectral type, rotation period and shape remain unknown.^[1]

Naming

This minor planet was named after Pol Swings (1906–1983), a Belgian astrophysicist, astronomer and president of the International Astronomical Union during 1964–1967, who significantly contributed to the understanding of the physics of comets and their spectra.^[2] The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 20 February 1976 (M.P.C. 3932).^[6]