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 |
---|---|---|---|
153078 Giovale | 2000 QW245 | John P. Giovale (born 1943), chairman of the Lowell Observatory Advisory Board during 2001–2007 | JPL · 153078 |
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 |
---|---|---|---|
153284 Frieman | 2001 DU109 | Joshua Frieman (born 1959), American astronomer and contributor to the Sloan Digital Sky Survey | JPL · 153284 |
153289 Rebeccawatson | 2001 FB10 | Rebecca Watson (born 1980), American radio, blog, and Internet ( The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe ) science advocate | JPL · 153289 |
153298 Paulmyers | 2001 FC122 | PZ Myers (born 1957), American associate professor of biology and public educator, author of the blog Pharyngula | JPL · 153298 |
Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
---|---|---|---|
153301 Alissamearle | 2001 FR183 | Alissa M. Earle (born 1991) completed her PhD research on Pluto's long-term seasonal cycles at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology while serving as a composition analysis team member for the New Horizons mission to Pluto. | JPL · 153301 |
153333 Jeanhugues | 2001 OR50 | Jean-Hugues Blanc (born 1971), French member of the Astronomical Society of Montpellier (French: Société astronomique de Montpellier) and astronomer at the discovery Pises Observatory | JPL · 153333 |
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 |
---|---|---|---|
153686 Pathall | 2001 TZ242 | Patrick Hall (born 1968), Canadian-American astronomer with the Sloan Digital Sky Survey | JPL · 153686 |
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 |
---|---|---|---|
There are no named minor planets in this number range |