1617 Alschmitt
asteroid
1617 Alschmitt, provisional designation 1952 FB, is an assumed carbonaceous asteroid from in the outer parts of the main belt, approximately 30 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 20 March 1952, by French astronomer Louis Boyer at Algiers Observatory in Algeria, Northern Africa, and named after French astronomer Alfred Schmitt.
Orbit and classification
This asteroid orbits the Sun in the outer main-belt at a distance of 2.8–3.6 AU once every 5 years and 9 months (2,091 days). Its orbit has an eccentricity of 0.13 and an inclination of 13° with respect to the ecliptic. Alschmitt was first identified as A906 DC at Heidelberg in 1906, extending the body's observation arc by 46 years prior to its official discovery observation.
Physical characteristics
Alschmitt is a presumed carbonaceous C-type asteroid.
Lightcurves
Two rotational lightcurve of Alschmitt obtained in 2003 and 2004, by René Roy and Laurent Bernasconi, gave a well-defined rotation period of 7.0613 and 7.062 hours with a brightness variation of 0.39 and 0.52 in magnitude, respectively (U=3/3). In October 2010, the Palomar Transient Factory derived a period of 7.0602 hours with an amplitude 0.49 magnitude (U=2).
Diameter and albedo
According to the survey carried out by NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer with its subsequent NEOWISE mission, Alschmitt measures 21.12 and 21.28 kilometers in diameter, and its surface has an albedo of 0.190 and 0.270, respectively. The Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes a standard albedo for carbonaceous asteroids of 0.057 and calculates a diameter of 36.78 kilometers using an absolute magnitude of 10.9.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “1617 Alschmitt” is asteroid. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Alschmitt and asteroid, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “asteroid” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 6, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q141491. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1617, 1952, 1906 and 2003.
The absence of detail may reflect summary conventions rather than a lack of surviving documentation. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “1617 Alschmitt”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow 1617 Alschmitt primary sources, 1617 Alschmitt archive and Alschmitt research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “1617 Alschmitt”?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “1617 Alschmitt” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.