Lightcurves of Near-Earth Asteroid 162173 (1999 JU3)

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.