8026 Johnmckay

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8026 Johnmckay is a binary Hungaria asteroid in the inner part of the asteroid belt, about 2 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on May 8, 1991, by American astronomer Eleanor Helin at Palomar Observatory in California. The asteroid is named after NASA test pilot John B. McKay, who flew early X-planes including the X-15 and died in 1975; he was posthumously awarded the astronaut badge in 2005.

Its orbit takes it around the Sun every about 2.67 years (976 days), at a distance of roughly 1.78 to 2.07 astronomical units. It has a small eccentricity (about 0.075) and an inclination of about 20 degrees, placing it in the inner, dense Hungaria group at the inner edge of the main belt.

Johnmckay is classified as a bright E-type asteroid. NEOWISE data suggest a diameter of about 1.7 kilometers with a very high albedo around 0.81, while other estimates using a typical Hungaria albedo of 0.30 give a diameter around 2.5 kilometers. The asteroid’s light reflects its bright surface, contributing to its high reflectivity.

Two well-recorded lightcurves show that Johnmckay is a very slow rotator. Observations in 2010 and 2015 yielded rotation periods of about 372 hours and 355 hours, with modest brightness changes, placing it among the slowest known asteroids.

In 2010, a small moon was discovered orbiting Johnmckay. The moon completes an orbit around the asteroid in roughly 2.3 hours.

The naming citation for 8026 Johnmckay was published on February 7, 2012.