Asteroid

An asteroid is a small, solid object in our Solar System, orbiting the Sun. An asteroid is an example of a minor planet (or planetoid), which are much smaller than planets. Most asteroids are believed to be remnants of the protoplanetary disc which were not incorporated into planets during the system's formation. Some asteroids have moons. The vast majority of the asteroids are within the main asteroid belt, with elliptical orbits between those of Mars and Jupiter.

Naming asteroids

The naming format

Newly discovered asteroids are given a provisional designation consisting of the year of discovery and an alphanumeric code, such as 2001 FH. When its orbit is confirmed, it is given a number, and later may also be given a name (e.g. 1 Ceres). The formal naming convention uses parentheses around the number (e.g. (433) Eros), however, dropping the parentheses is quite common. Informally, especially when a name is repeated in running text, it is common to drop the number altogether, or to drop it after the first mention.

Related Topics:
Provisional designation - 1 Ceres

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Unnamed asteroids

Unnamed asteroids that have been given a number keep their provisional designation, e.g. (29075) 1950 DA.

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As modern discovery techniques have discovered vast numbers of new asteroids, they are increasingly being left unnamed. The first asteroid to be left unnamed was (3360) 1981 VA. On rare occasions, an asteroid's provisional designation may become used as a name in itself: the still unnamed (15760) 1992 QB? gave its name to a group of asteroids which became known as cubewanos.

Related Topics:
(3360) 1981 VA - Provisional designation - (15760) 1992 QB? - Cubewano

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Sources for names

The first few asteroids were named after figures from Graeco-Roman mythology, but as such names started to run out, others were used —famous people, literary characters, the names of the discoverer's wives, children, and even television characters.

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The first asteroid to be given a non-mythological name was 20 Massalia, named after the city of Marseilles. For some time only female (or feminized) names were used; Alexander von Humboldt was the first man to have an asteroid named after him, but his name was feminized to 54 Alexandra. This unspoken tradition lasted until 334 Chicago was named; even then, oddly feminised names show up in the list for years afterward.

Related Topics:
20 Massalia - Marseilles - Alexander von Humboldt - 54 Alexandra - 334 Chicago

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As the number of asteroids began to run into the hundreds, and eventually the thousands, discoverers began to give them increasingly frivolous names. The first hints of this were 482 Petrina and 483 Seppina, named after the discoverer's pet dogs. However, there was little controversy about this until 1971, upon the naming of 2309 Mr. Spock (which was not even named after the Star Trek character, but after the discoverer's cat who supposedly bore a resemblance to him). Although the IAU subsequently banned pet names as sources, eccentric asteroid names are still being proposed and accepted, such as 6042 Cheshirecat, 9007 James Bond, or 26858 Misterrogers.

Related Topics:
482 Petrina - 483 Seppina - 1971 - 2309 Mr. Spock - Star Trek - IAU - 6042 Cheshirecat - 9007 James Bond - 26858 Misterrogers

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For a full list, see meanings of asteroid names.

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Special naming rules

Asteroid naming is not always a free-for-all: there are some types of asteroid for which rules have developed about the sources of names. For instance Centaurs (asteroids orbiting between Saturn and Neptune) are all named after mythological centaurs, Trojans after heroes from the Trojan War, and trans-Neptunian objects after underworld spirits.

Related Topics:
Centaurs - Centaur - Trojans - Trojan War - Trans-Neptunian objects

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