List of exceptional asteroids
The following is a collection of lists of asteroids of the Solar System that are exceptional in some way, such as their size or orbit. For the purposes of this article, "asteroid" refers to minor planets out to the orbit of Neptune, and includes the dwarf planet Ceres, the Jupiter trojans and the centaurs, but not trans-Neptunian objects (objects in the Kuiper belt, scattered disc or inner Oort cloud). For a complete list of minor planets in numerical order, see List of minor planets.
Asteroids are given minor planet numbers, but not all minor planets are asteroids. Minor planet numbers are also given to objects of the Kuiper belt, which is similar to the asteroid belt but farther out (around 30–60 AU), whereas asteroids are mostly between 2–3 AU from the Sun or at the orbit of Jupiter 5 AU from the Sun. Also, comets are not typically included under minor planet numbers, and have their own naming conventions.
Asteroids are given a unique sequential identifying number once their orbit is precisely determined. Prior to this, they are known only by their systematic name or provisional designation, such as Template:Mp.
Physical characteristicsEdit
Largest by diameterEdit
Estimating the sizes of asteroids from observations is difficult due to their irregular shapes, varying albedo, and small angular diameter. Observations by the Very Large Telescope of most large asteroids were published 2019–2021.<ref name=VLT>P. Vernazza et al. (2021) VLT/SPHERE imaging survey of the largest main-belt asteroids: Final results and synthesis. Astronomy & Astrophysics 54, A56 </ref><ref>As of Jan 2019, good rotational coverage (≥ 4 epochs) had also been obtained for 476 Hedwig and 596 Scheila.[1]</ref>
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The number of bodies grows rapidly as the size decreases. Based on IRAS data there are about 140 main-belt asteroids with a diameter greater than 120 km,<ref name="jpl-big"/> which is approximately the transition point between surviving primordial asteroids and fragments thereof.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> For a more complete list, see List of Solar System objects by size.
The inner asteroid belt (defined as the region interior to the 3:1 Kirkwood gap at 2.50 AU) has few large asteroids. Of those in the above list, only 4 Vesta, 19 Fortuna, 6 Hebe, 7 Iris and 9 Metis orbit there. (Sort table by mean distance.)
Template:Anchor Most massiveEdit
Below are the sixteen most-massive measured asteroids.<ref name="Baer2011">"Recent Asteroid Mass Determinations" Template:Webarchive. Maintained by Jim Baer. Last updated 2010-12-12. Access date 2011-09-02.</ref> Ceres, at a third the estimated mass of the asteroid belt, is half again as massive as the next fifteen put together. The masses of asteroids are estimated from perturbations they induce on the orbits of other asteroids, except for asteroids that have been visited by spacecraft or have an observable moon, where a direct mass calculation is possible. Different sets of astrometric observations lead to different mass determinations; the biggest problem is accounting for the aggregate perturbations caused by all of the smaller asteroids.<ref name="Baer2007"> Template:Cite journal</ref>
| Name | Mass Template:Nowrap |
Precision | Approx. proportion of all asteroids |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Ceres | 938.35 | 0.001% (938.34–938.36) | 39.2% |
| 4 Vesta | 259.076 | 0.0004% (259.075–259.077) | 10.8% |
| 2 Pallas | 204 | 1.5% (201–207) | 8.5% |
| 10 Hygiea | 87 | 8% (80–94) | 3.6% |
| 704 Interamnia | 35 | 14% (30–40) | 1.5% |
| 15 Eunomia | 30 | 6% (29–32) | 1.3% |
| 3 Juno | 27 | 9% (25–29) | 1.1% |
| 511 Davida | 27 | 27% (19–34) | 1.1% |
| 52 Europa | 24 | 16% (20–28) | 1.0% |
| 16 Psyche | 23 | 13% (20–26) | 1.0% |
| 532 Herculina | ≈ 23 | ? | ≈ 1% |
| 31 Euphrosyne | 17 | 18% (14–19) | 0.7% |
| 65 Cybele | 15 | 12% (13–17) | 0.6% |
| 87 Sylvia | 14.76 | 0.4% (14.70–14.82)<ref>F. Marchis; et al. (2005). "Discovery of the triple asteroidal system 87 Sylvia" (PDF). Nature. 436 (7052): 822–4. Bibcode:2005Natur.436..822M. doi:10.1038/nature04018. PMID 16094362. S2CID 4412813</ref> | 0.6% |
| 7 Iris | 14 | 17% (11–16) | 0.6% |
| 29 Amphitrite | 13 | 16% (11–15) | 0.5% |
| 6 Hebe | 12 | 20% (10–15) | 0.5% |
| 88 Thisbe | 12 | 20% (9–14) | 0.5% |
| 107 Camilla | 11.2 | 1% (11.1–11.3)<ref name="Pajuelo2018">M. Pajuelo, Benoit Carry, Frédéric Vachier, Michael Marsset et al. (March 2018) Physical, spectral, and dynamical properties of asteroid (107) Camilla and its satellites, Icarus 309</ref> | 0.5% |
| 324 Bamberga | 10 | 9% (9–11) | 0.4% |
| Total | 1781 | NA | 75% |
The proportions assume that the total mass of the asteroid belt is Template:Val, or Template:Val Template:Solar mass.<ref name="Pitjeva-2005" />Template:Sp
Outside the top four, the ranking of all the asteroids is uncertain, as there is a great deal of overlap among the estimates.
The largest asteroids with an accurately measured mass, because they have been studied by the probe Dawn, are 1 Ceres with a mass of Template:Val, and 4 Vesta at Template:Val. The third-largest asteroid with an accurately measured mass, because it has moons, is 87 Sylvia at Template:Val. Other large asteroids with masses measured from their moons are 107 Camilla and 130 Elektra.<ref name="Pajuelo2018">M. Pajuelo, Benoit Carry, Frédéric Vachier, Michael Marsset et al. (March 2018) Physical, spectral, and dynamical properties of asteroid (107) Camilla and its satellites, Icarus 309</ref><ref>Berdeu, Anthony; Langlois, Maud; Vachier, Frédéric (February 2021). "First observation of a quadruple asteroid. Detection of a third moon around (130) Elektra with SPHERE/IFS". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 658: 21.</ref><ref name=VLT/>
For a more complete list, see List of Solar System objects by size. Other large asteroids such as 423 Diotima currently only have estimated masses.<ref name=Michalak2001>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Michalak, G. (2001), assumed masses of perturbing asteroids used in calculations of perturbations of the test asteroids.Template:Clarify</ref>
Brightest from EarthEdit
Only Vesta is regularly bright enough to be seen with the naked eye. Under ideal viewing conditions with very dark skies, a keen eye might be able to also see Ceres, as well as Pallas and Iris at their rare perihelic oppositions.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> The following asteroids can all reach an apparent magnitude brighter than or equal to the +8.3 attained by Saturn's moon Titan at its brightest, which was discovered 145 years before the first asteroid was found owing to its closeness to the easily observed Saturn.
None of the asteroids in the outer part of the asteroid belt can ever attain this brightness. Even Hygiea and Interamnia rarely reach magnitudes of above 10.0. This is due to the different distributions of spectral types within different sections of the asteroid belt: the highest-albedo asteroids are all concentrated closer to the orbit of Mars, and much lower albedo C and D types are common in the outer belt.
Those asteroids with very high eccentricities will only reach their maximum magnitude rarely, when their perihelion is very close to a heliocentric conjunction with Earth, or (in the cases of 433 Eros, 99942 Apophis, Template:Mpl, Template:Mpl, and 367943 Duende) when the asteroid passes very close to Earth.
| Asteroid | Magnitude when brightestTemplate:Citation needed |
Semi- major axis (AU) |
Eccentricity of orbit |
Diameter (km) |
Year of discovery |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 99942 Apophis | 3.4* | 0.922 | 0.191 | 0.32 | 2004 |
| 4 Vesta | 5.20 | 2.361 | 0.089172 | 529 | 1807 |
| 2 Pallas | 6.49 | 2.773 | 0.230725 | 544 | 1802 |
| 1 Ceres | 6.65 | 2.766 | 0.079905 | 952 | 1801 |
| 7 Iris | 6.73 | 2.385 | 0.231422 | 200 | 1847 |
| 433 Eros | 6.8 | 1.458 | 0.222725 | 34 × 11 × 11 | 1898 |
| Template:Mpl | 6.85 | 1.711 | 0.467207 | 0.93 | 2001 |
| 367943 Duende | 7.04 | 0.910 | 0.089319 | 0.04 × 0.02 | 2012 |
| 6 Hebe | 7.5 | 2.425 | 0.201726 | 186 | 1847 |
| 3 Juno | 7.5 | 2.668 | 0.258194 | 233 | 1804 |
| 18 Melpomene | 7.5 | 2.296 | 0.218708 | 141 | 1852 |
| Template:Mpl | 7.74 | 1.448 | 0.639770 | 0.5 | 1998 |
| 15 Eunomia | 7.9 | 2.643 | 0.187181 | 268 | 1851 |
| 8 Flora | 7.9 | 2.202 | 0.156207 | 128 | 1847 |
| 324 Bamberga | 8.0 | 2.682 | 0.338252 | 229 | 1892 |
| 1036 Ganymed | 8.1 | 2.6657 | 0.533710 | 32 | 1924 |
| 9 Metis | 8.1 | 2.387 | 0.121441 | 190 | 1848 |
| 192 Nausikaa | 8.2 | 2.404 | 0.246216 | 103 | 1879 |
| 20 Massalia | 8.3 | 2.409 | 0.142880 | 145 | 1852 |
* Apophis will only achieve that brightness on April 13, 2029.<ref name="NEODyS2029">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="MPC2029">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It typically has an apparent magnitude of 20–22.
Slowest rotatorsEdit
This list contains the slowest-rotating known minor planets with a period of at least 1000 hours, or 41Template:Frac days, while most bodies have rotation periods between 2 and 20 hours. Also see Potentially slow rotators for minor planets with an insufficiently accurate period (Template:Small).
Fastest rotatorsEdit
This list contains the fastest-rotating minor planets with a period of less than 100 seconds, or 0.0277 hours. Bodies with a highly uncertain period, having a quality of less than 2, are highlighted in dark-grey. The fastest rotating bodies are all unnumbered near-Earth objects (NEOs) with a diameter of less than 100 meters (see table).
Among the numbered minor planets with an unambiguous period solution are Template:Mpl, a 60-meter sized stony NEO with a period of 352 seconds, as well as Template:Mpl and Template:Mpl, two main-belt asteroids, with a diameter of 0.86 and 2.25 kilometers and a period of 1.29 and 1.95 hours, respectively (see full list).
Orbital characteristicsEdit
RetrogradeEdit
Minor planets with orbital inclinations near or greater than 90° (the greatest possible is 180°) orbit in a retrograde direction. Template:As of, of the near-800,000 minor planets known, there are only 99 known retrograde minor planets (0.01% of total minor planets known).<ref name="jpl-90degree">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In comparison, there are over 2,000 comets with retrograde orbits. This makes retrograde minor planets the rarest group of all. High-inclination asteroids are either Mars-crossers (possibly in the process of being ejected from the Solar System) or damocloids. Some of these are temporarily captured in retrograde resonance with the gas giants.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
| Minor planet designation |
Inclination (°) | First observed/ Discovery date |
Condition code | {{{2}}}|[2]}} | Comment | Refs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Template:Mp | 89.154° | March 8, 2010 | 40 | Extremely high-inclined trans-Neptunian object.Template:Citation needed | Template:MPC | |
| Template:Mp | Template:Sort | October 27, 2017 | 0 | 79254 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | Template:Sort | September 21, 2018 | Template:Sort | 17407 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | Template:Sort | October 8, 2015 | 0 | 38805 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | Template:Sort | September 30, 2005 | 1 | 12200 | Has a well-determined orbit | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | Template:Sort | June 29, 2014 | 6 | 96 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | Template:Sort | March 8, 2010 | Template:Sort | 15 | Most highly inclined known main-belt asteroid (orbit is not well-known)Template:Citation needed | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | Template:Sort | September 13, 2015 | 0 | 184680 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | Template:Sort | July 13, 2016 | 2 | 6075 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:LoMP | Template:Sort | March 29, 2016 | 0 | 91561 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | Template:Sort | August 5, 2014 | 1 | 8085 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | Template:Sort | January 20, 2015 | Template:Sort | 39 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | Template:Sort | July 26, 2017 | Template:Sort | 8720 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | Template:Sort | May 9, 2014 | 0 | 95710 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | Template:Sort | April 16, 2013 | Template:Sort | 220 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mpl | Template:Sort | January 20, 2013 | Template:Sort | 46716 | Has a semi-major axis of 1254 AU, giving it the third largest semi-major axis of any known minor planet | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | Template:Sort | April 14, 2010 | 0 | 97888 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 100.482° | June 24, 2011 | 0 | 364936 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 101.295° | July 6, 2017 | 1 | 28014 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 101.381° | December 8, 2014 | 0 | 23544 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 101.828° | January 17, 2013 | Template:Sort | 1400 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mpl | 103.396° | May 31, 2008 | 1 | 198550 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mpl | 105.058° | December 18, 2008 | 0 | 1608789 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 105.113° | August 14, 2016 | 0 | 63879 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 105.226° | April 6, 2010 | 0 | 9072 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 106.883° | December 22, 2012 | 3 | 6674 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 107.449° | February 27, 2009 | Template:Sort | 1584 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 108.218° | October 29, 2017 | Template:Sort | 1638 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 108.328° | November 12, 2007 | 5 | 2204 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 109.074° | September 20, 2011 | 3 | 3654 | — | Template:MPC |
| 471325 Taowu | 110.104° | May 31, 2011 | 1 | 234828 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 110.226° | October 5, 2005 | 5 | 1488 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 110.504° | May 21, 2010 | Template:Sort | 71808 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mpl | 112.224° | November 1, 2005 | Template:Sort | 4212 | Semi-major axis of 837AU, but has a somewhat short 81-day observation arc for such a large orbit | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mpl | 113.243° | September 17, 2017 | 4 | 2160 | — | Template:MPC |
| 2016 LS | 114.338° | June 27, 2015 | 0 | 26688 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 118.243° | December 29, 2015 | 0 | 33454 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 118.797° | July 28, 2010 | 2 | 3535 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mpl | 118.970° | September 4, 2002 | 0 | 648554 | This outer-planet crosser is a damocloid and SDO. | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 121.179° | August 5, 2010 | 8 | 120 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 123.886° | June 2, 2010 | 7 | 935 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mpl | 125.356° | June 8, 2013 | 0 | 238336 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 128.506° | September 29, 2014 | 4 | 1334 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mpl | 129.246° | February 25, 2000 | 2 | 42408 | A damocloid and SDO. Crosses all the outer planets except Neptune. Came within 0.03 AU of Ceres in 1930.<ref>2008 DG8 and Ceres in 1930</ref> | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 129.820° | February 14, 2016 | 0 | 23800 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 130.333° | July 5, 2013 | 0 | 143510 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 130.505° | July 6, 2005 | 1 | 662673 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 133.437° | September 1, 2006 | 4 | 750 | Has an orbit with a data arc of 25 days | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 136.049° | December 21, 2012 | 5 | 1066 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 137.204° | January 2, 2017 | 3 | 1785 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 137.668° | August 17, 2009 | 1 | 43990 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 138.330° | October 9, 2016 | Template:Sort | 704 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 139.682° | December 23, 2016 | 1 | 50718 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 139.758° | March 4, 2019 | Template:Sort | 576 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 139.934° | November 27, 2014 | 0 | 115821 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mpl | 140.773° | July 1, 2010 | 0 | 330022 | Perihelion at 9.4 AU, only Template:Mp has perihelion further out (154-day data arc) | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 141.645° | November 24, 2011 | Template:Sort | 108 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 143.912° | January 25, 2010 | 1 | 35032 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mpl | 143.914° | January 30, 2010 | Template:Sort | 374596 | Semi-major axis of 408 AU with perihelion at 6.1 AU in April 2012 (1 year data arc) | Template:MPC |
| Template:LoMP | 144.034° | November 1, 2012 | 0 | 227052 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 144.203° | October 23, 2017 | Template:Sort | 68442 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 146.262° | February 15, 2010 | 0 | 129000 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 146.883° | April 18, 2012 | 0 | 31408 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 147.767° | December 17, 2009 | 0 | 195734 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 148.419° | November 5, 2016 | 0 | 108624 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 148.826° | August 16, 2017 | 1 | 45360 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 150.148° | March 5, 2006 | 0 | 62310 | q=2.58 AU and period=274 yr | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mpl | 151.816° | June 12, 1999 | 2 | 905838 | A damocloid, Jupiter- and Saturn-crossing minor planet.<ref>1999 LE31 approaches to Jupiter and Saturn</ref> | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 152.044° | September 19, 2017 | Template:Sort | 7590 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 152.136° | November 19, 2018 | 7 | 351 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 152.326° | March 3, 2016 | 0 | 181965 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 152.438° | February 2, 2017 | Template:Sort | 51500 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mpl | 154.367° | April 29, 2009 | 0 | 771834 | NEO that sometimes has the highest relative velocity to Earth (79 km/s) of known objects that come within 0.5 AU of Earth. However, the relative velocity at 1 AU from the sun is less than 72 km/s. | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 154.736° | June 6, 2013 | 0 | 14148 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mpl | 154.924° | October 11, 2021 | 3 | 2510 | Retrograde trans-Neptunian object close to a 3:–2 mean-motion orbital resonance with Neptune. | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 155.842° | March 20, 2015 | Template:Sort | 748 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 156.376° | March 12, 2010 | 4 | 2460 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 157.514° | December 9, 2015 | 2 | 5580 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 158.535° | April 29, 2000 | 2 | 25960 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 159.092° | December 9, 2015 | 0 | 21120 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 160.027° | October 9, 2012 | 3 | 900 | — | Template:MPC |
| 2019 CR | 160.341° | February 4, 2019 | 1 | 36993 | — | Template:MPC |
| 20461 Dioretsa | 160.428° | June 8, 1999 | 0 | 256779 | most highly inclined known minor planet from June 8, 1999, to July 13, 2004 | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 160.475° | February 25, 2018 | 0 | 261726 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 160.735° | May 4, 2017 | Template:Sort | 6844 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:LoMP | 161.695° | June 23, 2015 | 0 | 119280 | — | Template:MPC |
| 514107 Kaʻepaokaʻawela | 163.022° | November 26, 2014 | 0 | 74898 | A Jupiter co-orbital. First known example of a retrograde co-orbital asteroid with any of the planets. Might have an interstellar origin. | Template:MPC Src |
| Template:Mpl | 164.601° | September 14, 2006 | 5 | 2849 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mpl | 165.311° | January 23, 2006 | 0 | 207459 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 165.525° | July 13, 2004 | Template:Sort | 23944 | Came within 0.80 AU of Saturn on 2007-Jun-05, most highly inclined known minor planet from 2004/07/13-2005/11/01 | Template:MPC |
| Template:LoMP | 165.558° | November 26, 2013 | 0 | 186598 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 167.030° | February 28, 2016 | Template:Sort | 26 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:LoMP | 170.324° | September 30, 2008 | 0 | 1058616 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 170.569° | October 26, 2014 | Template:Sort | 34 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 170.764° | February 10, 2014 | 4 | 1938 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 170.919° | October 5, 2018 | 7 | 270 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 170.988° | March 11, 2016 | 0 | 18081 | — | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mpl | 172.138° | June 3, 2006 | Template:Sort | 48 | Has a data arc of only 2 days, but has a very high inclination | Template:MPC |
| (434620) 2005 VD | 172.872° | November 1, 2005 | 0 | 228965 | most highly inclined known minor planet from November 1, 2005, to June 1, 2013 | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mpl | 175.095° | June 1, 2013 | 6 | 1075 | Has the highest inclination of any known minor planet | Template:MPC |
<templatestyles src="Citation/styles.css"/>^{{#if:| }} the value given when the number of observations is multiplied by the observation arc; larger values are generally better than smaller values depending on residuals.
Template:Anchor Highly inclinedEdit
| Minor planet designation | Inclination | Discovery date | Comment | Refs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Ceres | 10.593° | January 1, 1801 | most highly inclined known minor planet from January 1, 1801, to March 28, 1802 | Template:MPC |
| 2 Pallas | 34.841° | March 28, 1802 | most highly inclined known minor planet from March 28, 1802, to October 31, 1920 | Template:MPC |
| 944 Hidalgo | 42.525° | October 31, 1920 | most highly inclined known minor planet from October 31, 1920, to May 22, 1950 | Template:MPC |
| 1373 Cincinnati | 38.949° | August 30, 1935 | First main-belt asteroid discovered to have an inclination greater than 2 Pallas. Most highly inclined known main-belt asteroid from August 30, 1935, to June 14, 1980 | Template:MPC |
| 1580 Betulia | 52.083° | May 22, 1950 | most highly inclined known minor planet from May 22, 1950, to July 4, 1973 | Template:MPC |
| 2938 Hopi | 41.436° | June 14, 1980 | Most highly inclined known main-belt asteroid from June 14, 1980, to September 20, 2000 | Template:MPC |
| (5496) 1973 NA | 67.999° | July 4, 1973 | An Apollo asteroid, Mars-crosser and +1 km NEO; most highly inclined known minor planet from 4 July 1973 to 8 August 1999. | Template:MPC |
| Template:LoMP | 45.794° | August 17, 1998 | Most highly inclined known main-belt asteroid from August 17, 1998, to October 19, 1998 | Template:MPC |
| Template:LoMP | 51.998° | October 29, 2000 | First main-belt asteroid discovered and numbered to have an inclination greater than 50°. | Template:MPC |
| Template:LoMP | 72.132° | January 4, 2001 | A Mars-crosser and near-Earth object. | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mpl | 77.904° | December 4, 2002 | A damocloid and SDO. It is almost a Uranus outer-grazer. | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mpl | 70.790° | March 6, 2003 | A Mars-crosser, near-Earth object and Jupiter inner-grazer. | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 64.281° | October 19, 1998 | Most highly inclined known main-belt asteroid from 1998/10/19-2007/11/01 | Template:MPC |
| Template:LoMP | 70.725° | June 9, 2004 | A Mercury- through Mars-crosser and near-Earth object. | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 68.659° | November 1, 2007 | Most highly inclined known main-belt asteroid from November 1, 2007, to September 26, 2008 | Template:MPC |
| Template:Mp | 74.247° | September 26, 2008 | Most highly inclined known main-belt asteroid from September 26, 2008, to March 8, 2010Template:Citation needed | Template:MPC |
TrojansEdit
- Earth trojans: Template:Mpl and Template:Mpl.
- Mars trojans: Template:Mpl, 5261 Eureka, Template:Mpl, Template:Mpl, Template:Mpl, Template:Mpl, Template:Mpl, and the candidate Template:Mpl.
- Jupiter trojans: the first one was discovered in 1906, 588 Achilles, and the current total is over 6,000.
Record-setting close approaches to EarthEdit
{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}}
Viewed in detailEdit
Spacecraft targetsEdit
| Name | Diameter (km) |
Discovered | Spacecraft | Year(s) | Closest approach (km) |
Closest approach (asteroid radii) |
Notes | Landmark(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Template:Sort | 939.4 | Template:Dts | Dawn | 2014–present | Template:Nts | 0.80 | Dawn took its first "close up" picture of Ceres in December 2014, and entered orbit in March 2015 | First likely dwarf planet visited by a spacecraft, largest asteroid visited by a spacecraft |
| Template:Sort | 525.4 | Template:Dts | Dawn | 2011–2012 | Template:Nts | 0.76 | Dawn broke orbit on 5 September 2012 and headed to Ceres, where it arrived in March 2015 | First "big four" asteroid visited by a spacecraft, largest asteroid visited by a spacecraft at the time |
| Template:Sort | 120×100×80 | Template:Dts | Rosetta | 2010 | Template:Nts | 64.9 | Flyby on 10 July 2010 | Largest asteroid visited by a spacecraft at the time |
| Template:Sort | 56×24×21 | Template:Dts | Galileo | 1993 | Template:Nts | 152 | Flyby; discovered Dactyl | First asteroid with a moon visited by a spacecraft, largest asteroid visited by spacecraft at the time |
| Template:Sort | 66×48×46 | Template:Dts | NEAR Shoemaker | 1997 | Template:Nts | 49.5 | Flyby | Largest asteroid visited by a spacecraft at the time |
| Template:Sort | 13×13×33 | Template:Dts | NEAR Shoemaker | 1998–2001 | Template:Nts | 0 | 1998 flyby; 2000 orbited (first asteroid studied from orbit); 2001 landing | First asteroid landing, first asteroid orbited by a spacecraft, first near-Earth asteroid (NEA) visited by a spacecraft |
| Template:Sort | 18.2×10.5×8.9 | Template:Dts | Galileo | 1991 | Template:Nts | 262 | Flyby | First asteroid visited by a spacecraft |
| Template:Sort | 4.6 | Template:Dts | Rosetta | 2008 | Template:Nts | 302 | Flyby | First asteroid visited by the ESA |
| Template:Sort | 4.5×~2 | Template:Dts | Chang'e 2 | 2012 | Template:Nts | 0.70 | Flyby<ref>Chang'E 2 images of Toutatis – December 13, 2012 – The Planetary Society</ref> | Closest asteroid flyby, first asteroid visited by China |
| Template:Sort | 4.0 | Template:Dts | Stardust | 2002 | Template:Nts | 1230 | Flyby | |
| Template:Sort | 2.2×0.6 | Template:Dts | Deep Space 1 | 1999 | Template:Nts | 12.7 | Flyby; followed by flyby of Comet Borrelly | |
| Template:Sort | 0.5×0.3×0.2 | Template:Dts | Hayabusa | 2005 | Template:Nts | 0 | Landed; returned dust samples to Earth | First asteroid with returned samples, smallest asteroid visited by a spacecraft, first asteroid visited by a non-NASA spacecraft |
| Template:Sort | 1.0 | Template:Dts | Hayabusa2 | 2018–2019 | Template:Nts | 0 | Multiple landers/rovers, sample return | First rovers on an asteroid |
| Template:Sort | 0.492 | Template:Dts | OSIRIS-REx | 2018–2021 | Template:Nts | 0 | Sample return | Smallest asteroid orbited, potentially hazardous object |
| Template:Sort | 0.492 | Template:Dts | DART/LICIACube | 2022 | Template:Nts | 3.2 | Impactor/flyby | Moon Dimorphos impacted by DART spacecraft, flown by LICIACube |
| Template:Sort | 0.790 | Template:Dts | Lucy | 2023 | Template:Nts | 1076 | Flyby; first of 8 planned asteroid flybys | Smallest main-belt asteroid visited to date; discovered first contact binary satellite Selam |
Surface resolved by telescope or lightcurveEdit
- 1 Ceres
- 2 Pallas
- 3 Juno
- 4 Vesta
- 5 Astraea
- 6 Hebe
- 7 Iris
- 8 Flora
- 9 Metis
- 10 Hygiea
- 12 Victoria
- 13 Egeria
- 14 Irene
- 15 Eunomia
- 16 Psyche
- 18 Melpomene
- 26 Proserpina
- 29 Amphitrite
- 35 Leukothea
- 37 Fides
- 51 Nemausa
- 52 Europa
- 65 Cybele
- 87 Sylvia
- 89 Julia
- 121 Hermione
- 130 Elektra
- 201 Penelope
- 216 Kleopatra
- 324 Bamberga
- 511 Davida
- 925 Alphonsina
- 1140 Crimea
- 9969 Braille
- (33342) 1998 WT24
- 66391 Moshup
- (136617) 1994 CC
- (285263) 1998 QE2
- (357439) 2004 BL86
Multiple systems resolved by telescopeEdit
{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}}
Comet-like activityEdit
{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}}
DisintegrationEdit
TimelineEdit
Landmark asteroidsEdit
| Name | Diameter (km) | Discovered | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Ceres | 939 | January 1, 1801 | First asteroid discovered |
| 5 Astraea | 117 | December 8, 1845 | First asteroid discovered after original four (38 years later) |
| 20 Massalia | 136 | September 19, 1852 | First asteroid named after city |
| 45 Eugenia | 202 | June 27, 1857 | First asteroid named after living person |
| 87 Sylvia | 261 | May 16, 1866 | First asteroid known to have more than one moon (determined in 2005) |
| 90 Antiope | 80×80 | October 1, 1866 | Double asteroid with two nearly equal components; its double nature was discovered using adaptive optics in 2000 |
| 216 Kleopatra | 217×94 | April 10, 1880 | Metallic asteroid with "ham-bone" shape and 2 satellites |
| 243 Ida | 56×24×21 | September 29, 1884 | First asteroid known to have a moon (determined in 1994) |
| 243 Ida I Dactyl | 1.4 | February 17, 1994 | Moon of 243 Ida, first confirmed satellite of an asteroid |
| 279 Thule | 127 | October 25, 1888 | Orbits in the asteroid belt's outermost edge in a 3:4 orbital resonance with Jupiter |
| 288 Glauke | 32 | February 20, 1890 | Exceptionally slow rotation period of about 1200 hours (2 months) |
| 323 Brucia | 36 | December 22, 1891 | First asteroid discovered by means of astrophotography rather than visual observation |
| 433 Eros | 13×13×33 | August 13, 1898 | First near-Earth asteroid discovered and the second largest; first asteroid to be detected by radar; first asteroid orbited and landed upon |
| 482 Petrina | 23.3 | March 3, 1902 | First asteroid named after dog |
| 490 Veritas | 115 | September 3, 1902 | Created in one of the largest asteroid-on-asteroid collisions of the past 100 million years |
| 588 Achilles | 135.5 | February 22, 1906 | First Jupiter trojan discovered |
| 624 Hektor | 370×195 | February 10, 1907 | Largest Jupiter trojan discovered |
| 719 Albert | 2.4 | October 3, 1911 | Last numbered asteroid to be lost then recovered |
| 935 Clivia | 6.4 | September 7, 1920 | First asteroid named after flower |
| 1090 Sumida | 13 | February 20, 1928 | Lowest numbered asteroid with no English Wikipedia entry |
| 1125 China | 27 | October 30, 1957 | First asteroid discovery to be credited to an institution rather than a person |
| 1566 Icarus | 1.4 | June 27, 1949 | First Mercury crosser discovered |
| 2309 Mr. Spock | 21.3 | August 16, 1971 | First asteroid named after cat |
| 3200 Phaethon | 5 | October 11, 1983 | First asteroid discovered from space; source of Geminids meteor shower. |
| 3753 Cruithne | 5 | October 10, 1986 | Unusual Earth-associated orbit |
| 4179 Toutatis | 4.5×2.4×1.9 | January 4, 1989 | Closely approached Earth on September 29, 2004 |
| 4769 Castalia | 1.8×0.8 | August 9, 1989 | First asteroid to be radar-imaged in sufficient detail for 3D modeling<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> |
| 5261 Eureka | ~2–4 | June 20, 1990 | First Mars trojan (Lagrangian point Template:L5) discovered |
| 11885 Summanus | 1.3 | September 25, 1990 | First automated discovery of a near-Earth object (NEO) |
| (29075) 1950 DA | 1.1 | February 23, 1950 | Small chance to collide with Earth in 2880 (1 in 2,600 or 0.039%)<ref name="impact-risk-summary"/> |
| 69230 Hermes | 0.3 | October 28, 1937 | Named but not numbered until its recovery in 2003 (65 years later) |
| 99942 Apophis | 0.3 | June 19, 2004 | First asteroid to rank greater than one on the Torino Scale (it was ranked at 2, then 4; now down to 0). Previously better known by its provisional designation 2004 MN4. |
| 152830 Dinkinesh I Selam | 0.22 | November 1, 2023 | First satellite discovered to be a contact-binary |
| Template:Mpl | 0.23 | December 4, 1997 | First asteroid to rank greater than zero on the impact-risk Torino Scale (it was ranked 1; now at 0) |
| Template:Mpl | 0.030 | June 2, 1998 | Approached within 800,000 km of Earth |
| Template:Mpl | 0.1 | January 9, 2002 | Unusual Earth-associated orbit |
| 2004 FH | 0.030 | March 15, 2004 | Discovered before it approached within 43,000 km of Earth on March 18, 2004. |
| Template:Mpl | ~0.003 | October 6, 2008 | First Earth-impactor to be spotted before impact (on October 7, 2008) |
| Template:Mpl | ~0.3 | October 2010 | First Earth trojan to be discovered |
| 2014 RC | ~0.017 | September 1, 2014 | Asteroid with fastest rotation: 16.2 seconds |
Numbered minor planets that are also cometsEdit
| Name | Cometary name | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| 2060 Chiron | 95P/Chiron | First centaur discovered in 1977, later identified to exhibit cometary behaviour. Also one of two minor planets (excluding dwarf planets) known to have a ring system |
| 4015 Wilson–Harrington | 107P/Wilson–Harrington | In 1992, it was realized that asteroid 1979 VA's orbit matched it with the positions of the lost comet Wilson–Harrington (1949 III) |
| 7968 Elst–Pizarro | 133P/Elst–Pizarro | Discovered in 1996 as a comet, but orbitally matched to asteroid Template:Mp |
| 60558 Echeclus | 174P/Echeclus | Centaur discovered in 2000, comet designation assigned in 2006 |
| 118401 LINEAR | 176P/LINEAR (LINEAR 52) | Main-belt comet–asteroid discovered to have a coma on November 26, 2005 |
The above table lists only numbered asteroids that are also comets. Note there are several cases where a non-numbered minor planets turned out to be a comet, e.g. C/2001 OG108 (LONEOS), which was provisionally designated Template:Mp.
Minor planets that were misnamed and renamedEdit
In earlier times, before the modern numbering and naming rules were in effect, asteroids were sometimes given numbers and names before their orbits were precisely known. And in a few cases duplicate names were given to the same object (with modern use of computers to calculate and compare orbits with old recorded positions, this type of error no longer occurs). This led to a few cases where asteroids had to be renamed.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
| Minor planet name | Description |
|---|---|
| 330 Adalberta | An object discovered March 18, 1892, by Max Wolf with provisional designation "1892 X" was named 330 Adalberta, but was lost and never recovered. In 1982 it was determined that the observations leading to the designation of 1892 X were stars, and the object never existed. The name and number 330 Adalberta was then reused for another asteroid discovered by Max Wolf on February 2, 1910, which had the provisional designation A910 CB. |
| 525 Adelaide and 1171 Rusthawelia | The object A904 EB discovered March 14, 1904, by Max Wolf was named 525 Adelaide and was subsequently lost. Later, the object 1930 TA discovered October 3, 1930, by Sylvain Arend was named 1171 Rusthawelia. In those pre-computer days, it was not realized until 1958 that these were one and the same object. The name Rusthawelia was kept (and discovery credited to Arend); the name 525 Adelaide was reused for the object 1908 EKa discovered October 21, 1908, by Joel Hastings Metcalf. |
| 715 Transvaalia and 933 Susi | The object 1911 LX discovered April 22, 1911, by H. E. Wood was named 715 Transvaalia. On April 23, 1920, the object 1920 GZ was discovered and named 933 Susi. In 1928 it was realized that these were one and the same object. The name Transvaalia was kept, and the name and number 933 Susi was reused for the object 1927 CH discovered February 10, 1927, by Karl Reinmuth. |
| 864 Aase and 1078 Mentha | The object A917 CB discovered February 13, 1917, by Max Wolf was named 864 Aase, and the object 1926 XB discovered December 7, 1926, by Karl Reinmuth was named 1078 Mentha. In 1958 it was discovered that these were one and the same object. In 1974, this was resolved by keeping the name 1078 Mentha and reusing the name and number 864 Aase for the object 1921 KE, discovered September 30, 1921, by Karl Reinmuth. |
| 1095 Tulipa and 1449 Virtanen | The object 1928 DC discovered February 24, 1928, by Karl Reinmuth was named 1095 Tulipa, and the object 1938 DO discovered February 20, 1938, by Yrjö Väisälä was named 1449 Virtanen. In 1966 it was discovered that these were one and the same object. The name 1449 Virtanen was kept and the name and number 1095 Tulipa was reused for the object 1926 GS discovered April 14, 1926, by Karl Reinmuth. |
| 1125 China and 3789 Zhongguo | The object 1928 UF discovered October 25, 1928, by Zhang Yuzhe (Y. C. Chang) was named 1125 China, and was later lost. Later, the object Template:Mp was discovered on October 30, 1957, at Purple Mountain Observatory and was initially incorrectly believed to be the rediscovery of the object 1928 UF. The name and number 1125 China were then reused for the object Template:Mp, and 1928 UF remained lost. In 1986, the object Template:Mpl was discovered and proved to be the real rediscovery of 1928 UF. This object was given the new number and name 3789 Zhongguo. Note Zhongguo is the Mandarin Chinese word for "China", in pinyin transliteration. |
| Asteroid 1317 and 787 Moskva | The object 1914 UQ discovered April 20, 1914, by G. N. Neujmin was named 787 Moskva (and retains that name to this day). The object 1934 FD discovered on March 19, 1934, by C. Jackson was given the sequence number 1317. In 1938, G. N. Neujmin found that asteroid 1317 and 787 Moskva were one and the same object. The sequence number 1317 was later reused for the object 1935 RC discovered on September 1, 1935, by Karl Reinmuth; that object is now known as 1317 Silvretta. |
Landmark namesEdit
Asteroids were originally named after female mythological figures. Over time the rules loosened.
First asteroid with non-Classical and non-Latinized name: 64 Angelina (in honor of a research station)
First asteroid with a non-feminine name: 139 Juewa (ambiguous) or 141 Lumen
First asteroid with a non-feminized man's name: 433 Eros
Lowest-numbered unnamed asteroid (Template:As of): Template:Mpl
Landmark numbersEdit
Many landmark numbers had specially chosen names for asteroids, and there was some debate about whether Pluto should have received number 10000, for example. This list includes some non-asteroids.
See alsoEdit
- List of minor planets
- List of minor planets named after people
- List of minor planets named after places
- List of instrument-resolved minor planets
- List of minor planet moons
- List of Mercury-crossing minor planets
- List of Venus-crossing minor planets
- List of Earth-crossing asteroids
- List of Mars-crossing minor planets
- List of Jupiter-crossing minor planets
- List of Saturn-crossing minor planets
- List of Uranus-crossing minor planets
- List of Neptune-crossing minor planets
- List of Solar System objects by size
- Lists of astronomical objects
- Small Solar System body
- Amor asteroid
- Apollo asteroid
- Aten asteroid
- Atira asteroid
- Centaur (small Solar System body)
- ʻOumuamua
BooksEdit
- Dictionary of Minor Planet Names, 5th ed.: Prepared on Behalf of Commission 20 Under the Auspices of the International Astronomical Union, Lutz D. Schmadel, Template:ISBN