5381 Sekhmet
5381 Sekhmet is an Aten asteroid whose orbit is sometimes closer to the Sun than the Earth's. It was discovered on 14 May 1991 by Carolyn Shoemaker at Palomar Observatory. It is named after Sekhmet, the Egyptian goddess of war.
Sekhmet is believed to be an S-type asteroid, and to measure approximately 1 km in diameter.[1]
In December 2003, a team of astronomers at Arecibo Observatory announced that the asteroid may have a moon that measures 300 m in diameter and orbits approximately 1.5 km from Sekhmet.[1] This moon is not yet confirmed.
References
- ^ a b Neish, C. D.; et al. (December 2003), "Radar Observations of Binary Asteroid 5381 Sekhmet", Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 35: 1421, Bibcode:2003AAS...20313402N
