(5310) Papike Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 2 March 1981 by S. J. Bus at Siding Spring.
James Papike (b. 1937), director emeritus of the Institute of Meteoritics at the University of New Mexico, is one of the world's foremost experts on the mineralogy and petrology of planetary materials. His studies of lunar rocks have helped reveal the complexity of the earth's nearest neighbor.Naming citation (20020624/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Papike is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Papike is 2.40 au from the Sun and 2.18 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 5310 |
| Provisional designation | 1981 EP26 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 2.98 km (#15,251 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.498 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 14.38 |
| Orbital period | 3.70 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.39 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.19 – 2.59 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.0847 |
| Inclination | 6.19° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.19 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
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