Speckle interferometry of asteroids. III - 511 Davida and its photometry

Photometric interferometry data on the fifth largest minor planet, 511 Davida, are used to generate orbital elements and physical dimensions. The Seward 2.3 m telescope was employed to obtain the speckle interferometric data. The asteroid was assumed to be a uniform-surfaced triaxial ellipsoid rotating about its shortest axis. A simultaneous amplitude-magnitude aspect method is defined for determining the pole position of the object, which is calculated to be within 4 deg of (307 deg; +32). A weighted amplitude aspect relation provides similar data. The albedos are estimated to lie within the range 0.24-0.42, and an a/b axial ratio of 0.97-1.66 is projected. The variations in the photometric albedos are taken as evidence of a nonuniform surface, a conclusion similar to that reached after earlier photometric measurements of the asteroid Herculina.