As minor planet discoveries are confirmed, they are given a permanent number by the IAU's Minor Planet Center (MPC), and the discoverers can then submit names for them, following the IAU's naming conventions. The list below concerns those minor planets in the specified number-range that have received names, and explains the meanings of those names.
Official naming citations of newly named small Solar System bodies are approved and published in a bulletin by IAU's Working Group for Small Bodies Nomenclature (WGSBN). [1] Before May 2021, citations were published in MPC's Minor Planet Circulars for many decades. [2] Recent citations can also be found on the JPL Small-Body Database (SBDB). [3] Until his death in 2016, German astronomer Lutz D. Schmadel compiled these citations into the Dictionary of Minor Planet Names (DMP) and regularly updated the collection. [4] [5]
Based on Paul Herget's The Names of the Minor Planets , [6] Schmadel also researched the unclear origin of numerous asteroids, most of which had been named prior to World War II. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain : SBDB New namings may only be added to this list below after official publication as the preannouncement of names is condemned. [7] The WGSBN publishes a comprehensive guideline for the naming rules of non-cometary small Solar System bodies. [8]
Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
---|---|---|---|
There are no named minor planets in this number range |
Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
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180141 Sperauskas | 2003 FA123 | Julius Sperauskas (born 1950), President of Lithuanian Astronomical Union (2003–2007), is a senior researcher at the Astronomical Observatory of Vilnius University ( 570 ). | JPL · 180141 |
180143 Gaberogers | 2003 FE124 | Gabe D. Rogers (born 1973) is an assistant group supervisor at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, who served as the Spacecraft Systems Engineer for the New Horizons mission to Pluto. | JPL · 180143 |
Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
---|---|---|---|
There are no named minor planets in this number range |
Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
---|---|---|---|
180367 Vonfeldt | 2003 YQ110 | Kevin Joseph VonFeldt (1983–2009), of Stafford, Texas, husband of Thanh, son of Randy and Mary and brother of Brian, was a licensed aircraft mechanic who loved family, baseball and motorcycles | JPL · 180367 |
Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
---|---|---|---|
There are no named minor planets in this number range |
Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
---|---|---|---|
There are no named minor planets in this number range |
Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
---|---|---|---|
180643 Cardoen | 2004 GK20 | Dany Cardoen (born 1949), French amateur astronomer and optician | JPL · 180643 |
Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
---|---|---|---|
180739 Barbet | 2004 KX7 | Alix Barbet (born 1940), French archaeologist and author, and Jean Barbet, French aeronautical engineer | JPL · 180739 |
Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
---|---|---|---|
180824 Kabos | 2005 GU8 | Gyula Kabos (1887–1941), Hungarian actor and comedian | JPL · 180824 |
180855 Debrarose | 2005 GO205 | Debra M. Rose (born 1959) is a Senior Program Manager for Research and Development at the Southwest Research Institute, and served as a Payload Instrument Sequencer for the New Horizons mission to Pluto. | JPL · 180855 |
180857 Hofigéza | 2005 HG7 | Géza Hofi (1936–2002), an actor and comedian, had a strong influence on Hungarian cabaret | JPL · 180857 |
Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
---|---|---|---|
180940 Bighornfire | 2005 ML2 | all firefighting personnel and organizations who tirelessly fought and suppressed the Bighorn Fire, a wildfire which scorched 120 000 acres of forest in the Santa Catalina Mountains, Arizona in summer 2020. Their heroic efforts kept thousands of people safe, and saved the astronomical facilities located there. | IAU · 180940 |