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 published in MPC's Minor Planet Circulars several times a year.[1] Recent citations can also be found on the JPL Small-Body Database (SBDB).[2] 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.[3][4] Based on Paul Herget's The Names of the Minor Planets,[5] Schmadel also researched the unclear origin of numerous asteroids, most of which had been named prior to World War II. Meanings marked with * are from legacy sources may not be accurate. This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Government document "SBDB".
Gregory Fahlman (born 1944) has served since 2003 as the Director General of the Herzberg Institute of Astrophysics, National Research Council of Canada. He has made extensive contributions to studies of globular star clusters using ground- and space-based telescopes.
Steponas Darius (Steponas Darašius; 1896–1933), was a Lithuanian American pilot. In 1933, he and Stasys Girėnas (see below) attempted a nonstop flight from New York City to Kaunas, Lithuania. They crossed the Atlantic in 37 hours, but died when their plane crashed near the village of Kuhdamm, near Soldin, Germany.
Stasys Girėnas (1893–1933) was a Lithuanian American pilot. In 1933, he and Steponas Darius (see above) attempted a nonstop flight from New York City to Kaunas, Lithuania. They crossed the Atlantic in 37 hours, but died when their plane crashed near the village of Kuhdamm, near Soldin, Germany.
This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Government document "SBDB".
