Conversion of Absolute Magnitude to Diameter
The following table lists the diameters of minor planets corresponding to
the given values of the absolute magnitude, H. The diameter is to be read
as kilometers when H is in the left-hand column or as meters when in the
right-hand column. E.g., H = 8.0 corresponds to a diameter of 65 to 150 km,
whereas H = 23.0 corresponds to a diameter of 65 to 150 m.
Conversion of H to a diameter for a specific object requires knowledge of
the object's albedo. This quantity is not known for most objects, so the
diameters listed here are given as ranges: the smaller value corresponding
to an albedo of 0.25 and the larger to an albedo of 0.05. Most objects have
albedos in this range. If a specific object has an albedo < 0.05, the
diameter will be larger than the upper limit listed here. If the albedo >
0.25, the diameter will be smaller than the lower limit given here.
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H
Diameter H
3.0
670 - 1500 18.0
3.5
530 - 1200 18.5
4.0
420 - 940 19.0
4.5
330 - 740 19.5
5.0
260 - 590 20.0
5.5
210 - 470 20.5
6.0
170 - 370 21.0
6.5
130 - 300 21.5
7.0
110 - 240 22.0
7.5
85 - 190 22.5
8.0
65 - 150 23.0
8.5
50 - 120 23.5
9.0
40 - 95 24.0
9.5
35 - 75 24.5
10.0
25 - 60 25.0
10.5
20 - 50 25.5
11.0
17 - 37 26.0
11.5
13 - 30 26.5
12.0
11 - 24 27.0
12.5
8 - 19 27.5
13.0
7 - 15 28.0
13.5
5 - 12 28.5
14.0
4 - 9 29.0
14.5
3 - 7 29.5
15.0
3 - 6 30.0
15.5
2 - 5
16.0
2 - 4
16.5
1 - 3
17.0
1 - 2
17.5
1 - 2
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