Patientia.space

Main-belt asteroid (CU-type) · Outer main belt · nearly circular orbit

Patientia

(451) Patientia · discovered 1899 by Auguste Charlois

A 250-kilometre asteroid on one of the roundest orbits in the outer belt — bright enough for a small telescope at good oppositions.

Key factsTelescope picker
Patientia at a glance
Object typeMain-belt asteroid, Tholen CU-type (carbonaceous)[1]
DiscoveredDec. 4, 1899 by Auguste Charlois, Nice Observatory[2]
Provisional designation1899 EY[2]
Diameter≈ 254 km — about the 15th-largest main-belt asteroid[1]
Geometric albedo≈ 0.085[1]
Rotation period≈ 9.73 hours[1]
Light-curve amplitude0.05–0.10 magnitude[2]
Distance from Sun2.85–3.28 AU[1]
Eccentricity≈ 0.07 (nearly circular)[1]
Orbital period≈ 5.4 years[1]
Inclination≈ 15.2°[1]
Peak brightnessMag 10.7 (Jan. 2013) and 10.4 (Dec. 2017) at favourable oppositions[2]

A large asteroid that keeps a low profile

Patientia is roughly the 15th-largest asteroid in the main belt, about 250 km across.[2][1] Despite that, it has never been visited by a spacecraft, so much about it is still unknown.

JPL classifies it as a CU-type asteroid in the Tholen system — a dark, carbon-rich class — with a geometric albedo of about 0.085.[1]

An unusually round orbit

Patientia’s orbit has an eccentricity of only about 0.07, keeping it between 2.85 and 3.28 AU from the Sun. It takes about 5.4 years to go round, tilted about 15° to the ecliptic.[1]

Sun Mars (1.52 AU)Jupiter (5.2 AU) aphelion ≈ 3.28 AU perihelion ≈ 2.85 AU
Top-down orbit of Patientia to scale, computed from JPL orbital elements (a ≈ 3.06 AU, e ≈ 0.0695).[1] Mars and Jupiter orbits shown for comparison.[6]

A gentle light curve

Photometric studies between 1969 and 2003 combined to give an irregular light curve with a synodic period of 9.730 ± 0.004 hours and a brightness variation of just 0.05–0.10 magnitude.[2] A small amplitude like that usually means a fairly even shape or surface as seen from Earth.[4]

Discovered at Nice by Auguste Charlois

Patientia was found on December 4, 1899 by French astronomer Auguste Charlois at the Nice Observatory and given the provisional designation 1899 EY.[2] Charlois discovered 99 asteroids there, starting with 267 Tirza in 1887.[3]

The name is Latin for “patience”.

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Bright for a late discovery

Patientia regularly reaches 11th magnitude. At favourable oppositions it gets to about 10.7 (January 2013) and 10.4 (December 2017) — very bright for a minor planet discovered so late.[2] That puts it in range of a small telescope under reasonable skies.

Choosing a telescope for asteroids

A 10th- or 11th-magnitude asteroid is an easy target for a 100–150 mm telescope once you know where to point. Our telescope picker matches telescope types to your budget, sky and what you most want to see.

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Auguste Charlois: 99 asteroids from Nice

The French astronomer who found Patientia straddled the switch from visual to photographic asteroid hunting.

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Reading Patientia’s light curve

What 34 years of brightness measurements reveal about a large, quiet asteroid.

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Spotting Patientia with a small telescope

A practical guide to finding a 10th-magnitude asteroid — and proving that you found it.

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Sources

  1. Small-Body Database Lookup: 451 Patientia — NASA JPL Solar System Dynamics
  2. 451 Patientia — Wikipedia
  3. Auguste Charlois — Wikipedia
  4. Light curve — Wikipedia
  5. Max Wolf — Wikipedia
  6. Planetary Fact Sheet (orbit comparison) — NASA NSSDCA

Figures are rounded; where sources differ we note it. Spotted an error? Tell us.