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In ancient times, only the Sun and Moon, a few stars, and the most easily visible planets had names. Over the last few hundred years, the number of identified astronomical objects has risen from hundreds to over a billion, and more are discovered every year. Astronomers need to be able to assign systematic designations to unambiguously identify all of these objects, and at the same time give names to the most interesting objects, and where relevant, features of those objects.
Takao Kobayashi is a Japanese amateur astronomer and an outstanding discoverer of minor planets who currently works at the Ōizumi Observatory. The asteroid 3500 Kobayashi is named after him.
Peter Kušnirák is a Slovak astronomer, discoverer of minor planets, and a prolific photometrist of light-curves at Ondřejov Observatory in the Czech Republic. He was married to Slovak astronomer Ulrika Babiaková with whom he discovered 123647 Tomáško, named after their son Tomáško.
Pierre Antonini is a retired French mathematics professor and amateur astronomer who has discovered several minor planets and two supernovae at his private Observatoire de Bédoin located at Bédoin, southeastern France. For many of his discoveries he used a 16-cm telescope or a 30-cm telescope.
The definition of the term planet has changed several times since the word was coined by the ancient Greeks. Greek astronomers employed the term ἀστέρες πλανῆται, 'wandering stars', for star-like objects which apparently moved over the sky. Over the millennia, the term has included a variety of different celestial bodies, from the Sun and the Moon to satellites and asteroids.
This is a list of minor planets which have been officially named by the Working Group for Small Bodies Nomenclature (WGSBN) of the International Astronomical Union (IAU). The list consists of partial pages, each covering a number range of 1,000 bodies citing the source after each minor planet was named for. An overview of all existing partial pages is given in section § Index.
(55565) 2002 AW197 (provisional designation 2002 AW197) is a classical, non-resonant trans-Neptunian object from the Kuiper belt in the outermost region of the Solar System, also known as a cubewano. With a likely diameter of at least 600 kilometers (400 miles), it is approximately tied with 2002 MS4 and 2013 FY27 (to within measurement uncertainties) as the largest unnamed object in the Solar System. It was discovered at Palomar Observatory in 2002.
Krisztián Sárneczky is a Hungarian teacher of geography and prolific discoverer of minor planets and supernovae, researching at Konkoly Observatory in Budapest, Hungary. He is a board member of the Hungarian Astronomical Association (HAA) and member of the American Association of Variable Star Observers, leader of the Comet Section of the HAA, and is a contributor in the editorial work of Hungarian Astronomical Almanach.
A dwarf planet is a small planetary-mass object that is in direct orbit around the Sun, massive enough to be gravitationally rounded, but insufficient to achieve orbital dominance like the eight classical planets of the Solar System. The prototypical dwarf planet is Pluto, which for decades was regarded as a planet before the "dwarf" concept was adopted in 2006.
The International Astronomical Union (IAU) defined in August 2006 that, in the Solar System, a planet is a celestial body that:
- is in orbit around the Sun,
- has sufficient mass to assume hydrostatic equilibrium, and
- has "cleared the neighbourhood" around its orbit.
A formal minor-planet designation is, in its final form, a number–name combination given to a minor planet. Such designation always features a leading number assigned to a body once its orbital path is sufficiently secured. The formal designation is based on the minor planet's provisional designation, which was previously assigned automatically when it had been observed for the first time. Later on, the provisional part of the formal designation may be replaced with a name. Both formal and provisional designations are overseen by the Minor Planet Center (MPC), a branch of the International Astronomical Union.
(469372) 2001 QF298, provisionally known as 2001 QF298, is a resonant trans-Neptunian object that resides in the Kuiper belt in the outermost region of the Solar System. It was discovered on August 19, 2001 by Marc W. Buie. 2001 QF298 is a plutino, meaning that it is locked in a 3:2 orbital resonance with Neptune, much like Pluto.
(42301) 2001 UR163 (provisional designation 2001 UR163) is a resonant trans-Neptunian object and possible dwarf planet located in the outermost region of the Solar System. The object measures approximately 352 kilometers (220 miles) in diameter with a high albedo and stays in an uncommon orbital resonance (4:9) with Neptune. It was discovered on 21 October 2001 by astronomers of the Deep Ecliptic Survey program at Kitt Peak National Observatory near Tucson, Arizona, United States. As of 2021, it has not been named.
Julio Ángel Fernández Alves is a Uruguayan astronomer and teacher, member of the department of astronomy at the Universidad de la República in Montevideo. He is also a member of PEDECIBA,, and the Uruguayan Society of Astronomy. From 2005 to 2010, he was the Dean of the Universidad de la Republica's Faculty of Sciences. The asteroid 5996 Julioangel, discovered in 1983, was named after him.
5088 Tancredi, provisional designation 1979 QZ1, is a carbonaceous Themistian asteroid from the outer region of the asteroid belt, approximately 15 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 22 August 1979, by Swedish astronomer Claes-Ingvar Lagerkvist at ESO's La Silla Observatory in northern Chile. It is named after Uruguayan astronomer Gonzalo Tancredi.
Comets have been observed for over 2,000 years. During that time, several different systems have been used to assign names to each comet, and as a result many comets have more than one name.
Los Molinos Observatory is an astronomical observatory owned by the Ministerio de Educación y Cultura de Uruguay and operated in collaboration with the University of the Republic's Astronomy Department. It is located near the city of Las Piedras, on the outskirts of Montevideo, Uruguay.
Gonzalo Tancredi is an Uruguayan astronomer and full professor in the Department of Astronomy at the University of the Republic in Montevideo, Uruguay. He is an active member of the International Astronomical Union (IAU) and investigator at Los Molinos Observatory.
Gladys Elena Vergara Gavagnin was a Uruguayan astronomer and professor, known for her calculations on eclipses, made during a time when computers were not capable of them. The asteroid 5659 Vergara is named in her honor.
References
- ↑ Rickman, H. "(5996) Julioangel = 1979 OH14 = 1983 NR = 1961 CT". International Astronomical Union Minor Planet Center. Retrieved May 11, 2024.