Tom Stafford (astronomer)

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Asteroids discovered: 40 [1]
12061 Alena March 21, 1998
12533 Edmond June 2, 1998
(13324) 1998 SK2 September 18, 1998
13436 Enid November 17, 1999
13688 Oklahoma September 9, 1997
(14165) 1998 UZ October 19, 1998
(15162) 2000 GN2 April 5, 2000
15904 Halstead September 29, 1997
(16820) 1997 VA3 November 6, 1997
(18033) 1999 NR4 July 14, 1999
(19632) 1999 RP39 September 13, 1999
(22825) 1999 RO39 September 13, 1999
(23201) 2000 SJ42 September 27, 2000
(24095) 1999 VN November 2, 1999
(24107) 1999 VS19 November 12, 1999
(25357) 1999 TM October 1, 1999
(27085) 1998 UA1 October 19, 1998
(27219) 1999 EL March 9, 1999
(29822) 1999 DS2 February 19, 1999
(31246) 1998 DZ12 February 24, 1998
(33431) 1999 EK March 9, 1999
(39808) 1997 WQ25 November 25, 1997
(39842) 1998 BV25 January 29, 1998
(40171) 1998 RS September 11, 1998
(44474) 1998 WE November 16, 1998
(44478) 1998 WK6 November 23, 1998
(44886) 1999 VF1 November 4, 1999
(44903) 1999 VR19 November 12, 1999
(47030) 1998 VG32 November 12, 1998
(49297) 1998 VY4 November 11, 1998
(58584) 1997 SE11 September 29, 1997
(65889) 1998 BB4 January 23, 1998
(68009) 2000 YD4 December 21, 2000
(70426) 1999 TN October 1, 1999
(70733) 1999 VV6 November 8, 1999
(74791) 1999 SW6 September 30, 1999
(80249) 1999 WB9 November 30, 1999
(91906) 1999 VE24 November 15, 1999
(100640) 1997 VY3 November 7, 1997
(103576) 2000 CG1 February 4, 2000

Tom Stafford is an American astronomer who has discovered a number of asteroids since 1997, [1] including 12061 Alena, [2] 12533 Edmond, [3] 13436 Enid, [4] 13688 Oklahoma [5] and 15904 Halstead [6] at Zeno Observatory (observatory code 727) in Edmond, Oklahoma. He is the son of Joseph W. Stafford and Alena Ruth Robbins, both now deceased, and has a sister, Susan Halstead. [7]

Astronomer scientist who studies celestial bodies

An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses their studies on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. They observe astronomical objects such as stars, planets, moons, comets, and galaxies – in either observational or theoretical astronomy. Examples of topics or fields astronomers study include planetary science, solar astronomy, the origin or evolution of stars, or the formation of galaxies. Related but distinct subjects like physical cosmology, which studies the Universe as a whole.

Asteroid minor planet that is not a comet

Asteroids are minor planets, especially of the inner Solar System. Larger asteroids have also been called planetoids. These terms have historically been applied to any astronomical object orbiting the Sun that did not resemble a planet-like disc and was not observed to have characteristics of an active comet such as a tail. As minor planets in the outer Solar System were discovered they were typically found to have volatile-rich surfaces similar to comets. As a result, they were often distinguished from objects found in the main asteroid belt. In this article, the term "asteroid" refers to the minor planets of the inner Solar System including those co-orbital with Jupiter.

Edmond, Oklahoma City in Oklahoma, United States

Edmond is a city in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, United States, and a part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area in the central part of the state. As of the 2010 census, the population was 81,405, making it the sixth largest city in the state of Oklahoma.

Related Research Articles

Near-Earth Asteroid Tracking (NEAT) was a program run by NASA and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, surveying the sky for near-Earth objects. NEAT was conducted from December 1995 until April 2007, at GEODSS on Hawaii, as well as at Palomar Observatory in California. With the discovery of more than 40 thousand minor planets, NEAT has been one of the most successful programs in this field, comparable to the Catalina Sky Survey, LONEOS and Mount Lemmon Survey.

Glauke is a stony, tumbling asteroid and slow rotator from the intermediate asteroid belt, approximately 32 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 20 February 1890, by Robert Luther at Düsseldorf-Bilk Observatory in Germany. It was the last of his asteroid discoveries. It is named after Creusa, a daughter of Creon a king of Corinth in Greek mythology.

Peitho is a main-belt asteroid. It is probably an S-type asteroid. It was discovered by R. Luther on March 15, 1872, and named after one of the two Peithos in Greek mythology. There have been two observed Peithoan occultations of a dim star: one was in 2000 and the other in 2003.

Alfred Schmitt was a French astronomer. Schmitt worked at Algiers Observatory in the 1930s and 1940s and at the Royal Observatory in Uccle, Belgium in the 1950s. From 1955 to 1958 he was also director of the Quito Observatory in Ecuador. He extensively studied minor planets and comets and is credited with having discovered four asteroids.

254 Augusta is a main-belt asteroid, discovered on 31 March, 1886 by astronomer Johann Palisa at Vienna Observatory, Austria. The stony S-type asteroid measures about 12 kilometers in diameter.

290 Bruna main-belt asteroid

Bruna is a main belt asteroid that was discovered on 20 March 1890 by Johann Palisa, an Austrian astronomer at the Vienna Observatory.

Tokio is a main-belt asteroid discovered on 2 December 1902 by Auguste Charlois at the Nice Observatory.

Montague is a minor planet orbiting the Sun that was discovered by Raymond Smith Dugan on 7 May 1904 in Heidelberg, Germany.

699 Hela Mars-crossing asteroid

699 Hela is a Mars crossing asteroid. With an absolute magnitude of 11.7, the asteroid is about 12–27 km in diameter.

710 Gertrud is a Themistian asteroid, which means it is a member of the Themis family of asteroids. It was discovered by Austrian astronomer Johann Palisa on 28 February 1911 from Vienna.

785 Zwetana is a minor planet orbiting the Sun that was discovered by Adam Massinger, an assistant at the Heidelberg Observatory, on March 30, 1914. Radar observations indicate that it is metallic.

798 Ruth is a minor planet orbiting the Sun that was discovered by German astronomer Max Wolf on November 21, 1914. It was named after the biblical character Ruth.

799 Gudula is a minor planet orbiting the Sun discovered by German astronomer Karl Wilhelm Reinmuth on 9 March 1915 at the Heidelberg observatory.

Jeffrey S. Medkeff, usually known as Jeff Medkeff, was a prominent science writer and educator. He was also a designer of robotic telescopes, a minor philanthropist, and an advocate of personal and sexual freedom.

4544 Xanthus asteroid of Apollo class

4544 Xanthus, provisional designation 1989 FB, is an asteroid, classified as near-Earth object of the Apollo group, approximately 1.3 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 31 March 1989, by astronomers Henry Holt and Norman Thomas at the Palomar Observatory in California.

5731 Zeus is an Apollo asteroid and near-Earth object discovered on November 4, 1988, by Carolyn Shoemaker at Palomar Observatory. Based on its observed brightness and assumed albedo it is estimated to have a diameter between 2.1 and 4.7 km.

2005 WY55 is a near-Earth Asteroid belonging to the Apollo group. It was first discovered on November 26, 2005. The asteroid will pass within 330,000 km (0.9 lunar distances) from the Earth on May 28, 2065. It has an absolute magnitude (H) of 20.68. It is estimated to be 190 to 250 meters in diameter. It was removed from the Sentry Risk Table on July 1, 2006.

(8014) 1990 MF minor planet

(8014) 1990 MF is a near-Earth minor planet in the Apollo group. It was discovered by Eleanor F. Helin at the Palomar Observatory in San Diego County, California, on June 26, 1990. This object is approximately 0.7 kilometres (0.43 mi) in diameter, and listed as a potentially hazardous object. On July 23, 2020, it will come within 0.055 au of the Earth—about 21.3 times the Moon's distance.

The JPL Small-Body Database (SBDB) is an astronomy database about small Solar System bodies. It is maintained by Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and NASA and provides data for all known asteroids and several comets, including orbital parameters and diagrams, physical diagrams, and lists of publications related to the small body. The database is updated on a daily basis.

2011 GA is a small asteroid that is a Near-Earth object and an Apollo asteroid.

References

  1. 1 2 "Minor Planet Discoverers (Alphabetically)". Minor Planet Center . Retrieved 15 March 2011.
  2. ↑ "JPL Small-Body Database Browser:12061 Alena". NASA: Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 15 March 2011.
  3. ↑ "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 12533 Edmond". NASA: Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 15 March 2011.
  4. ↑ "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 13436 Enid". NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 15 March 2011.
  5. ↑ "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 13688 Oklahoma". NASA: Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 15 March 2011.
  6. ↑ "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: 15904 Halstead". NASA: Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 8 April 2011.
  7. ↑ "Ruth Stafford". Obituaries, Enid News, Oklahoma. February 3, 2011. Retrieved 2011-04-08.


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