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".
Aurél Ponori Thewrewk (1921–2014), Hungarian astronomical historian, director of the Urania Public Observatory and the Budapest Planetarium, honorary president of the Hungarian Astronomical Association(hu)
Pranvera Hyseni (born 1995) is the founder and Director of Astronomy Outreach of Kosovo, the largest non-profit astronomy outreach organization in that country. She is an enthusiastic ambassador for Kosovo amateur astronomy.
Saran Poshyachinda (born 1964) is Executive Director of the National Astronomical Research Institute of Thailand. Encouraging public interest in astronomy, he was crucial in the construction of the Thai National Observatory, regional observatories for the public throughout Thailand and a 40-m radio telescope.
This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Government document "SBDB".
