2940 Bacon

2940 Bacon

Discovery
Discovered by	Palomar–Leiden survey C. J. van Houten, I. van Houten-Groeneveld and Tom Gehrels
Discovery site	Palomar Obs.
Discovery date	24 September 1960
Designations
MPC designation	2940 Bacon
Named after	Francis Bacon
Alternative names	3042 P–L · 1981 ER3
Minor planet category	main-belt
Orbital characteristics
Epoch 27 June 2015 (JD 2457200.5)
Uncertainty parameter 0
Observation arc	53.69 yr (19,609 days)
Aphelion	3.4380 AU
Perihelion	2.1274 AU
Semi-major axis	2.7827 AU
Eccentricity	0.2354
Orbital period	4.64 yr (1,695.5 days)
Mean anomaly	267.12°
Inclination	6.4418°
Longitude of ascending node	273.77°
Argument of perihelion	116.82°
Earth MOID	1.1428 AU
Physical characteristics
Absolute magnitude (H)	14.2

2940 Bacon, also designated 3042 P–L, is an asteroid from the asteroid belt that was discovered on September 24, 1960 by Cornelis van Houten, Ingrid van Houten-Groeneveld and Tom Gehrels at Palomar Observatory in San Diego County, California. The asteroid orbits the Sun at a distance of 2.1–3.4 AU once every 4 years and 8 months (1,696 days). The orbit is rather eccentric (0.24).

The designation P–L stands for Palomar–Leiden, named after Palomar Observatory and Leiden Observatory, which collaborated on the fruitful Palomar–Leiden survey in the 1960s. Gehrels used Palomar's Samuel Oschin telescope (also known as the 48-inch Schmidt Telescope), and shipped the photographic plates to Cornelis Johannes van Houten and Ingrid van Houten-Groeneveld at Leiden Observatory. The trio are credited with several thousand asteroid discoveries.

It was named in honour of English scholar Sir Francis Bacon (1561–1626). He has been called the father of empiricism and his works established and popularized the scientific method.

External links

• Dictionary of Minor Planet Names, Google books
• 2940 Bacon at the JPL Small-Body Database

• Discovery · Orbit diagram · Orbital elements · Physical parameters