55673

55673 is the provisional designation (55673) 2000 CE31 of a numbered minor planet that resides in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. The object was discovered on 14 January 2000 by the Lincoln Near‑Earth Asteroid Research (LINEAR) survey using a 1‑m aperture telescope at the Lincoln Laboratory Experimental Test Site in Socorro, New Mexico. The original observation was made under favorable sky conditions that allowed the faint asteroid to be detected with a limiting magnitude of about 19.5. Subsequent follow‑up observations over several years enabled astronomers to refine its orbital parameters.

Orbital calculations place (55673) 2000 CE31 in the intermediate part of the main belt, with a semi‑major axis of approximately 2.45 astronomical units, an orbital period near four Earth years, a low eccentricity of about 0.10, and an inclination of roughly 5 degrees relative to the ecliptic. The orbit shows no significant resonances with the major planets, marking it as a typical background population member. Photometric studies conducted by the Minor Planet Center and the Pan‑STARRS survey indicate a rotation period of roughly 12.5 hours and a light‑curve amplitude that suggests a somewhat elongated shape.

Based on its absolute magnitude of about 15.5 and an assumed albedo of 0.15 for stony S‑type asteroids, the estimated diameter of (55673) 2000 CE31 is between 3.5 and 4.5 kilometers. No spacecraft have visited the asteroid, and it has not been noted in any significant scientific studies beyond its standard orbital characterization. The asteroid remains catalogued by the International Astronomical Union with the designation (55673), and it continues to be monitored for orbital refinement and potential future occultation opportunities.