Description
Near-Earth asteroid (hereafter NEA) 162173 (1999 JU3) is a potential target of two asteroid sample return missions not only because of its accessibility but also because of the first C-type asteroid for exploration missions. The lightcurve related physical properties of this object were investigated during the 2011-2012 apparition. We aim to confirm the physical parameters useful for JAXAs Hayabusa 2 mission such as rotational period, absolute magnitude and phase function. Our data complement previous studies which did not cover low phase angles. With optical imagers and 1-2m class telescopes, we acquired the photometric data at different phase angles. We independently derived the rotational lightcurve and the phase curve of the asteroid.
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