2023 WK3

2023 WK₃ is a near-Earth object of the Atira group.

2023 WK₃

Discovery [1]
Discovered by	Grzegorz Duszanowicz
Discovery site	Moonbase South Observatory, Hakos
Discovery date	21 November 2023 (first observed only)
Designations
MPC designation	2023 WK3
Minor planet category	NEO · Atira [1]
Orbital characteristics [2]
Epoch 13 September 2023 (JD 2460200.5)
Uncertainty parameter 7
Observation arc	22 days
Aphelion	0.9660 AU
Perihelion	0.3221 AU
Semi-major axis	0.64407 AU
Eccentricity	0.4999
Orbital period (sidereal)	0.5169 yr (188.80 d)
Mean anomaly	47.94°
Mean motion	1° 54m 24.48s / day
Inclination	24.49°
Longitude of ascending node	235.061°
Argument of perihelion	11.117°
Earth MOID	0.0376212 AU
Physical characteristics
Mean diameter	450–550 m (est. at 0.05–0.15)
Absolute magnitude (H)	20.5±0.4[2]

Discovery

2023 WK₃ was discovered at G=19.5 mag on 2023 November 21 by G. Duszanowicz using the 0.28-m f/1.9 reflector + CMOS camera of the Moonbase South Observatory, Hakos. MPC code L87 ^[3]

Orbit and classification

It orbits the Sun at a distance of 0.32–0.97 AU once every 6 months (189 days; semi-major axis of 0.64 AU). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.5 and a somewhat high inclination of 24° with respect to the ecliptic.^[2] It could be a fragment or a former moon of a larger present-day Atira.^[4]

Numbering and naming

As of 2023, this minor planet has neither been numbered nor named by the Minor Planet Center.