Meanings of minor-planet names: 39001–40000
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]
39001–39100
| Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
|---|---|---|---|
| There are no named minor planets in this number range | |||
39101–39200
| Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
|---|---|---|---|
| 39184 Willgrundy | 2000 WG166 | William ("Will") M. Grundy, astronomer at Lowell Observatory | JPL · 39184 |
39201–39300
| Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
|---|---|---|---|
| 39300 Auyeungsungfan | 2001 HM38 | Auyeungsungfan (born 1959) spent 20 years as a school principal. | JPL · 39300 |
39301–39400
| Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
|---|---|---|---|
| 39314 Moritakumi | 2001 UH5 | Takumi Mori (1936–2015) worked in the Japan Coast Guard for many years, undertaking research in positional astronomy and geodetic observations. He also made efforts towards the establishment of the Kansai Branch of the Japan Spaceguard Association. | JPL · 39314 |
| 39332 Lauwaiming | 2002 AH10 | Lau Wai Ming (born 1960), a School principal as well as a committed and passionate educator who firmly believes in the value of knowledge. He has served in the education field for 38 years and has inspired and touch the hearts of many teachers and students. | JPL · 39332 |
| 39335 Caccin | 2002 AR12 | Bruno Caccin, Italian astronomer | JPL · 39335 |
| 39336 Mariacapria | 2002 AA13 | Maria Teresa Capria, Italian astronomer | JPL · 39336 |
| 39382 Opportunity | 2696 P-L | Opportunity, Mars Exploration Rover B | JPL · 39382 |
39401–39500
| Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
|---|---|---|---|
| 39405 Mosigkau | 1063 T-1 | Mosigkau castle, near Dessau, Germany, a relic of the Rococo period, built between 1752 and 1757 as a summer residence for Princess Anna Wilhelmine von Anhalt-Dessau | JPL · 39405 |
| 39415 Janeausten | 4231 T-1 | Jane Austen, English novelist | JPL · 39415 |
| 39420 Elizabethgaskell | 2084 T-2 | Elizabeth Gaskell (1810–1865) was a 19th-century English novelist, best known for her 1853 novel Cranford. | JPL · 39420 |
| 39427 Charlottebrontë | 3360 T-2 | Charlotte Brontë, English novelist and poet, best known for Jane Eyre | JPL · 39427 |
| 39428 Emilybrontë | 4169 T-2 | Emily Brontë, English novelist and poet, who wrote only one novel, Wuthering Heights | JPL · 39428 |
| 39429 Annebrontë | 4223 T-2 | Anne Brontë, English novelist and poet, best known for The Tenant of Wildfell Hall | JPL · 39429 |
| 39463 Phyleus | 1973 SZ | Phyleus, son of King Augeas of Elis, and father of Meges, who led the contingent from Dulichium to the Trojan War | JPL · 39463 |
| 39464 Pöppelmann | 1973 UO5 | Matthäus Daniel Pöppelmann, 17th-century German architect | JPL · 39464 |
39501–39600
| Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
|---|---|---|---|
| 39509 Kardashev | 1981 US11 | Nikolai Kardashev (born 1932), director of the Astrospace Center of the Lebedev Physical Institute. | JPL · 39509 |
| 39516 Lusigny | 1987 OO | Lusigny (sur Barse) is a small French village near the Lac d´Orient in Aube. | JPL · 39516 |
| 39529 Vatnajökull | 1989 VJ1 | Vatnajökull (Glacier of Lakes), the largest glacier in Iceland. JPL | MPC · 39529 |
| 39536 Lenhof | 1990 TA11 | Helmut Lenhof, a retired professor of physics. He was one of the founders of the Carinthian Astronomical Association in Klagenfurt, Austria. | JPL · 39536 |
| 39539 Emmadesmet | 1991 GU4 | Emma de Smet (2005) is the second granddaughter of the discoverer, and daughter of Mayré and Robby. | JPL · 39539 |
| 39540 Borchert | 1991 GF11 | Wolfgang Borchert, German poet and writer | JPL · 39540 |
| 39543 Aubriet | 1991 PX7 | Claude Aubriet, French painter | JPL · 39543 |
| 39549 Casals | 1992 DP13 | Pablo Casals, Spanish (Catalan)-American cellist, composer and conductor | JPL · 39549 |
| 39557 Gielgud | 1992 JG | John Gielgud, British actor | JPL · 39557 |
| 39558 Kishine | 1992 KC | Junichiro Kishine, Japanese theoretical physicist and amateur astronomer | JPL · 39558 |
| 39564 Tarsia | 1992 RT5 | Rodrigo Dias Tarsia, Brazilian astrophysicist and retired professor at the Federal University in Belo Horizonte | JPL · 39564 |
| 39566 Carllewis | 1992 SQ1 | Frederick Carlton "Carl" Lewis, former American track and field athlete | JPL · 39566 |
| 39571 Pückler | 1992 SN24 | Herman Graf von Pückler, German landscaper and writer | JPL · 39571 |
39601–39700
| Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
|---|---|---|---|
| 39635 Kusatao | 1994 YL | Kusatao Nakamura, Chinese-born Japanese Haiku poet | JPL · 39635 |
| 39645 Davelharris | 1995 QC10 | David Lowell Harris, 20th-century American astronomer, member of the "pre-LINEAR" observing team at Socorro during 1995–1996 | JPL · 39645 |
| 39653 Carnera | 1995 UC | Luigi Carnera (1875–1962) began his career as Max Wolf's assistant at the Heidelberg Observatory, Germany, where he discovered sixteen new asteroids in 1901/02. Later, he taught astronomy in Genoa and was director of Trieste and Naples Observatories. | JPL · 39653 |
| 39655 Muneharuasada | 1995 UM3 | Muneharu Asada (born 1961), a member of the Yamagata Astronomical Society. | JPL · 39655 |
| 39677 Anagaribaldi | 1996 EG | Ana Maria de Jesus Ribeiro da Silva di Garibaldi (Anita Garibaldi), Brazilian-born heroine of the Italian resurgence and wife of Giuseppe Garibaldi | JPL · 39677 |
| 39678 Ammannito | 1996 LQ1 | Eleonora Ammannito, Italian astronomer and space scientist | JPL · 39678 |
| 39679 Nukuhiyama | 1996 OD3 | Nukuhiyama, a mountain which is located in the west of the discoverer's home town, Shirataka, Yamagata prefecture. | JPL · 39679 |
| 39686 Takeshihara | 1996 PT9 | Takeshi Hara, a member of the Yamagata Astronomical Society in 2009 and actively popularizes astronomy. | JPL · 39686 |
| 39699 Ernestocorte | 1996 TF8 | Ernesto Corte, American entrepreneur, founder of Gamma-Metrics, pioneer in the application of radiation physics to elemental analysis of materials | JPL · 39699 |
39701–39800
| Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
|---|---|---|---|
| 39712 Ehimedaigaku | 1996 TJ54 | Ehime University (Ehime Daigaku) is a Japanese national university. Its Research Center for Space and Cosmic Evolution has conducted various deep surveys of the universe and has discovered very high-redshift galaxies | JPL · 39712 |
| 39726 Hideyukitezuka | 1996 VL38 | Hideyuki Tezuka (born 1955) a Japanese amateur astronomer who became a member of the Nanyo Astronomical Lovers Club in 1986 and actively popularizes astronomy. | JPL · 39726 |
| 39734 Marchiori | 1996 XG26 | Gianpietro Marchiori (born 1953) is the founder of EIE Group, an Italian company that has been involved in the construction of optical and radio telescopes around the world. | JPL · 39734 |
| 39741 Komm | 1997 AT6 | Rudolf Walter Komm (born 1957) is an American helioseismologist who has contributed substantially to the study of solar activity. His studies include tracing the movements of active regions, measuring fluctuations in solar oscillations and determining flows in granulation. Komm has also developed several innovative methods of time-series analysis. | JPL · 39741 |
| 39748 Guccini | 1997 BJ3 | Francesco Guccini (born 1940) is an Italian folk composer and singer, very famous for his popular songs. | JPL · 39748 |
| 39791 Jameshesser | 1997 PH4 | James E. Hesser is a Canadian astronomer, acting director of the Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics and 1997 recipient of the Michael Smith Award for Science Promotion. He has contributed to the study of atomic and molecular spectroscopy, rapidly varying degenerate stars, stellar populations and chemical evolution in the Milky Way and nearby galaxies (Src). | JPL · 39791 |
| 39799 Hadano | 1997 UO1 | The Japanese city of Hadano in Kanagawa Prefecture is where the Hadano Astronomical Observatory (355) is located. The city was famous for its tobacco production, and is now noted for its fresh springs. Hadano is situated at the foot of the Tanzawa mountains in an area of great natural beauty. | JPL · 39799 |
39801–39900
| Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
|---|---|---|---|
| 39802 Ivanhlinka | 1997 UO9 | Ivan Hlinka (1950–2004) was one of the biggest legends in the history of Czech ice hockey. He won gold medals at the World Championships in 1972, 1976 and 1977. As a coach, he won gold medals at the Olympic Games in 1998 and at the World Championship in 1999. He was a member of the IIHF Hall of Fame from 2002. | JPL · 39802 |
| 39809 Fukuchan | 1997 WB30 | Fukuchan, cartoon character created by Ryuichi Yokoyama | JPL · 39809 |
| 39849 Giampieri | 1998 CF2 | Giuliano Giampieri, friend of the first discoverer | JPL · 39849 |
| 39854 Gabriopiola | 1998 DB3 | Gabrio Piola Daverio (1794–1850), an Italian mathematician and physicist. | JPL · 39854 |
| 39860 Aiguoxiang | 1998 DY7 | Ai Guoxiang (born 1938) is a solar astrophysicist, an Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), and an Academician of TWAS. He was the first Director General of the National Astronomical Observatories, CAS, and served as Vice-President and President of IAU Commission 10 from 1994–2000. | JPL · 39860 |
| 39864 Poggiali | 1998 DH20 | Maurizio Poggiali, poet, aircraft navigator and aerospace engineer | JPL · 39864 |
| 39880 Dobšinský | 1998 ER9 | Pavol Emanuel Dobšinský (1828–1885), a Lutheran pastor, folklorist, literary historian, editor and translator | JPL · 39880 |
| 39882 Edgarmitchell | 1998 EM11 | Edgar Mitchell (1930–2016), an American naval officer, aviator and NASA astronaut, who was the sixth man to walk on the Moon. | JPL · 39882 |
| 39890 Bobstephens | 1998 FA3 | Robert Stephens (born 1955) is an American amateur astronomer from California who has determined some 30 sets of minor-planet lightcurve parameters since becoming active in the field in 1999. His high-quality work and generosity in sharing his time and knowledge within the amateur community have set a standard for others to follow. | JPL · 39890 |
39901–40000
| Named minor planet | Provisional | This minor planet was named for... | Ref · Catalog |
|---|---|---|---|
| 39930 Kalauch | 1998 FR74 | Klaus-Dieter Kalauch (born 1958), a German amateur astronomer and teacher of astronomy, understood how to inspire his friends with the beauty of the sky. Without his influence, Gerhard Lehmann, who discovered this object, would never have become interested in observing minor planets. | JPL · 39930 |
| 39971 József | 1998 GN10 | Attila József (1905–1937), one of the greatest Hungarian poets of the 20th century, spent his entire life in extreme poverty and suffered from depression. He was a prodigy, making his debut at the age of 17 with his first collection of poems. During his short and rhapsodic career, an amazing oeuvre emerged. | JPL · 39971 |
| 39991 Iochroma | 1998 HR37 | Iochroma, a genus of shrubs and small trees found in the forests of South America. Their hummingbird-pollinated flowers are tubular or trumpet-shaped. Iochromas are often cultivated as flowering ornamentals. | JPL · 39991 |
References
- ^ "WGSBN Bulletin Archive". Working Group Small Body Nomenclature. 14 May 2021. Retrieved 16 May 2021.
- ^ "MPC/MPO/MPS Archive". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 27 July 2016.
- ^ "JPL – Solar System Dynamics: Discovery Circumstances". Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 25 June 2019.
- ^ Schmadel, Lutz D. (2003). Dictionary of Minor Planet Names. Springer Berlin Heidelberg. ISBN 978-3-540-00238-3. Retrieved 27 July 2016.
- ^ Schmadel, Lutz D. (2006). Dictionary of Minor Planet Names – Addendum to Fifth Edition: 2003–2005. Springer Berlin Heidelberg. ISBN 978-3-540-34360-8. Retrieved 27 July 2016.
- ^ Herget, Paul (1968). The Names of the Minor Planets. Cincinnati, Ohio: Minor Planet Center, Cincinnati Observatory. OCLC 224288991.
- ^ "Guide to Minor Body Astrometry – When can I name my discovery?". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
- ^ "Minor Planet Naming Guidelines (Rules and Guidelines for naming non-cometary small Solar-System bodies) – v1.0" (PDF). Working Group Small Body Nomenclature (PDF). 20 December 2021.