421 Zähringia

421 Zähringia, provisional designation 1896 CZ, is a stony asteroid from the intermediate asteroid belt, approximately 14 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 7 September 1896, by astronomer Max Wolf at Heidelberg Observatory in Germany. The asteroid was named for the House of Zähringen, a medieval noble family that ruled parts of Swabia and Switzerland.^[1][2]

421 Zähringia

Discovery[1]
Discovered by	M. F. Wolf
Discovery site	Heidelberg Obs.
Discovery date	7 September 1896
Designations
MPC designation	(421) Zähringia
Named after	House of Zähringen[2] (medieval noble family)[2]
Alternative designations	1896 CZ · 1949 WJ A908 OB
Minor planet category	main-belt · (middle)
Orbital characteristics[1]
Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Observation arc	112.92 yr (41,243 days)
Aphelion	3.2604 AU
Perihelion	1.8203 AU
Semi-major axis	2.5404 AU
Eccentricity	0.2834
Orbital period (sidereal)	4.05 yr (1,479 days)
Mean anomaly	297.47°
Mean motion	0° 14m 36.24s / day
Inclination	7.7854°
Longitude of ascending node	187.40°
Argument of perihelion	209.23°
Physical characteristics
Dimensions	14.119±0.320 km[1]
Synodic rotation period	6.42 h (0.268 d)[1]
Geometric albedo	0.172±0.027[1]
Spectral type	S (Tholen)[1]
Absolute magnitude (H)	11.78[1]

The first occultation of a star by 421 Zähringia was observed in 2021.