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1999 MN is a 200-m diameter asteroid that has been designated as potentially hazardous by the Minor Planet Center. Its orbital elements (a = 0.674, e = 0.665, i = 2.06 deg) make it one of the most suitable candidates for the measurement of perihelion shift (18 arcsecond/cy) due to general relativistic effects and the oblateness of the Sun. 1999 MN is also a prime candidate for the measurement of Yarkovsky orbital drift which can be used to place constraints on an asteroid mass and thermal properties. We obtained good data in 2004, and will continue with observations during the 2005, 2009, and 2010 apparitions.
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| Figure 1: Predicted rates of perihelion shift due to GR alone for a number of newly discovered NEOs, compared to that of 1566 Icarus. |
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Figure 2: Trajectories of 1999 MN (solid) and Earth (dashed) looking down on the ecliptic plane (2004-JUL-11 to 2005-JUN-02, counter-clockwise). The Sun is at the origin and the vernal equinox is in the positive X-direction. The longitude of perihelion of the asteroid is 90.6 deg, and the 0.16 arcsec shift due to GR during this period corresponds to a range difference of ~115 km at 1 AU, mostly aligned with the line of sight. |
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