1441 Bolyai


1441 Bolyai, provisional designation, is a dark asteroid from the central region of the asteroid belt, approximately 13 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 26 November 1937, by Hungarian astronomer György Kulin at Konkoly Observatory in Budapest, Hungary. The asteroid was named after Hungarian mathematician János Bolyai.

Orbit and classification

Bolyai orbits the Sun in the central main-belt at a distance of 2.0–3.3 AU once every 4 years and 3 months. Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.24 and an inclination of 14° with respect to the ecliptic. Bolyais observation arc begins the night following its official discovery observation in 1937, as no precoveries were taken, and no prior identifications were made.

Physical characteristics

According to the surveys carried out by the Infrared Astronomical Satellite IRAS, and NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer with its subsequent NEOWISE mission, Bolyai measures between 12.31 and 14.76 kilometers in diameter, and its surface has an albedo between 0.047 and 0.05.
The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link derives an albedo of 0.0426 and a diameter of 14.75 kilometers with an absolute magnitude of 13.2. For asteroids with a semi-major axis between 2.6 and 2.7 AU, the probability of an asteroid being either of a stony or of a carbonaceous composition is considered equally likely by CALL. In the case of Bolyai, however, the space-based albedo measurements suggest that it is most likely of a carbonaceous composition.

Lightcurve

As of 2017, no rotational lightcurve of Bolyai has been obtained. Its rotation period, composition and shape remain unknown.

Naming

This minor planet was named after the Hungarian mathematician János Bolyai, a co-founder of non-Euclidean geometry in the early 19th century. Naming citation was first mentioned in The Names of the Minor Planets by Paul Herget in 1955 and a clarification of the naming is given in a paper published in Journal of Astronomical History and Heritage in 2012.