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New Asteroid Satellite Discovered

SKY & TELESCOPE'S NEWS BULLETIN
MARCH 26, 1999

[snip]

NEW ASTEROID SATELLITE

For the first time, ground-based astronomers have directly imaged a
satellite orbiting an asteroid. William J. Merline (Southwest Research
Institute) and his colleagues announced on IAU *Circular* 7129 that several
images of minor planet 45 Eugenia show a fainter companion. The satellite
-- designated S/1998 (45) 1 -- was first seen in a series of pictures
during a 10-day span in November 1998 using the 3.6-meter
Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope atop Mauna Kea, Hawaii. The object was
spotted again on January 4th. Merline and his colleagues determined that
the moon orbits the 200-kilometer-wide asteroid in a near-circular orbit
every 4.7 days. Details of the discovery will appear in a forthcoming issue
of *Nature.*

[snip]

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