4486 Mithra

Also known as Mithra

asteroid

Key facts

Discovered by: E. W. Elst V. G. Shkodrov
Discovery site: Rozhen Obs. – Smolyan
Discovery date: 22 September 1987
Pronunciation: / ˈ m ɪ θ r ə /
Named after: Mithra , ( proto-Indo-Iranian religion )
Alternative designations: 1987 SB 1974 DN 1
Minor planet category: NEO Apollo PHA
Observation arc: 29.04 yr (10,607 days)
Aphelion: 3.6582 AU
Perihelion: 0.7417 AU
Semi major axis: 2.2000 AU
Orbital period sidereal: 3.26 yr (1,192 days)

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Article

4486 Mithra (prov. designation: 1987 SB), is an eccentric asteroid and suspected contact-binary, classified as near-Earth object and potentially hazardous asteroid, approximately 2 kilometers in diameter. It belongs to the Apollo group of asteroids and is a relatively slow rotator.

The asteroid was discovered on 22 September 1987, by Belgian astronomer Eric Elst and Bulgarian astronomer Vladimir Shkodrov at Rozhen Observatory, in the Smolyan Province of Bulgaria. It was named after the Indo-Iranian divinity Mithra.