List of exceptional asteroids

Ceres is the largest and most massive asteroid and the only one that is a dwarf planet.

Vesta is the brightest and second-most-massive asteroid. It suffered a crust-penetrating impact approximately one billion years ago.^[1]

The following is a collection of lists of exceptional asteroids in the Solar System. For the purposes of this article "asteroid" means minor planet up to the orbit of Jupiter, which includes the dwarf planet Ceres. For a complete list of minor planets in numerical order, see List of minor planets.

Note: each asteroid is given a unique sequential identifying number after its orbit is precisely determined. Prior to this, asteroids are known only by their systematic name or provisional designation, such as "1950 DA".

Physical characteristics

Largest by diameter

Estimating the sizes of asteroids from observations is difficult due to their irregular shapes, varying albedo (reflectivity), and small angular diameter. For example, pure C-type asteroids are much darker than most. Asteroids with only one or two axes measured may have a falsely inflated geometric mean diameter if the unknown second and/or third axis is noticeably smaller than the primary axis. Asteroid 16 Psyche has an IRAS diameter of 253 km, yet has a more recent and accurate geometric mean of only 186 km.

Name	Diameter (km) (geometric mean)	Dimensions (km)	Mean distance from Sun (in AU)	Date discovered	Discoverer	Class
0011 Ceres	946±2	965×962×891	2.766	January 1, 1801	Piazzi, G.	G
0044 Vesta	525.4±0.2	572.6 × 557.2 × 446.4 ± 0.2	2.362	March 29, 1807	Olbers, H. W.	V
0022 Pallas	512±3	550±4 × 516±3 × 476±3 km[2]	2.773	March 28, 1802	Olbers, H. W.	B
01010 Hygiea	431±7	530×407×370	3.139	April 12, 1849	de Gasparis, A.	C
704704 Interamnia	326	350×304	3.062	October 2, 1910	Cerulli, V.	F
05252 Europa	315	380×330×250	3.095	February 4, 1858	Goldschmidt, H.	C
511511 Davida	289	357×294×231	3.168	May 30, 1903	Dugan, R. S.	C
08787 Sylvia	286	385×265×230	3.485	May 16, 1866	Pogson, N. R.	X
06565 Cybele	273	302×290×232	3.439	March 8, 1861	Tempel, E. W.	C
01515 Eunomia	268	357×255×212	2.643	July 29, 1851	de Gasparis, A.	S
0033 Juno	258	320×267×200	2.672	September 1, 1804	Harding, K. L.	S
03131 Euphrosyne	256		3.149	September 1, 1854	Ferguson, J.	C
624624 Hektor	241	370×195(×195)	5.235	February 10, 1907	Kopff, A.	D
08888 Thisbe	232	221×201×168	2.769	June 15, 1866	Peters, C. H. F.	B
324324 Bamberga	229		2.684	February 25, 1892	Palisa, J.	C
451451 Patientia	225		3.059	December 4, 1899	Charlois, A.
532532 Herculina	222		2.772	April 20, 1904	Wolf, M.	S
04848 Doris	222	278×142	3.108	September 19, 1857	Goldschmidt, H.	C
375375 Ursula	216		3.126	September 18, 1893	Charlois, A.
107107 Camilla	215	285×205×170	3.476	November 17, 1868	Pogson, N. R.	C
04545 Eugenia	213	305×220×145	2.720	June 27, 1857	Goldschmidt, H.	F
0077 Iris	213	240×200×200	2.386	August 13, 1847	Hind, J. R.	S
02929 Amphitrite	212	233×212×193	2.554	March 1, 1854	Marth, A.	S
423423 Diotima	209	171×138	3.065	December 7, 1896	Charlois, A.	C
01919 Fortuna	208	225×205×195	2.442	August 22, 1852	Hind, J. R.	G
01313 Egeria	206	217×196	2.576	November 2, 1850	de Gasparis, A.	G
02424 Themis	198		3.136	April 5, 1853	de Gasparis, A.	C
09494 Aurora	197	225×173	3.160	September 6, 1867	Watson, J. C.	C
702702 Alauda	195		3.195	July 16, 1910	Helffrich, J.
121121 Hermione	190	268×186×183	3.457	May 12, 1872	Watson, J. C.	C
259259 Aletheia	190	–	3.135	June 28, 1886	Peters, C. H. F.	CP/X
372372 Palma	189		3.149	August 19, 1893	Charlois, A.
128128 Nemesis	188		2.751	November 25, 1872	Watson, J. C.	C
0066 Hebe	186	205x185x170	2.426	July 1, 1847	Hencke, K. L.	S
01616 Psyche	186	240×185×145	2.924	March 17, 1852	de Gasparis, A.	M
120120 Lachesis	174		3.301	April 10, 1872	Borrelly, A.	C
04141 Daphne	174	213x160	2.765	May 22, 1856	Goldschmidt, H.	C
0099 Metis	174	222x182x130	2.385	April 25, 1848	Graham, A.	S

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.^[3] 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.

Most massive

Below are the nineteen most massive measured asteroids.^[4] The masses of asteroids are calculated from perturbations caused by Mars and other asteroids, except in those that have been visited by spacecraft where a direct mass determination 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.^[5]

The relative masses of the top twelve asteroids known,^[4] compared to the remaining mass of the asteroid belt.^[6]

1 Ceres   4 Vesta   2 Pallas   10 Hygiea   31 Euphrosyne   704 Interamnia

511 Davida   532 Herculina   15 Eunomia   3 Juno   16 Psyche   52 Europa   all others

Name	Mass (×10^18 kg)	Precision	Approx. prop’n all asteroids	Diameter ranking
1 Ceres	939.3	0.05% (939–940)	31%	1
4 Vesta	259.076	0.0004% (259.075–259.077)	8.6%	2
2 Pallas	201	6.4% (188–214)	6.7%	3
10 Hygiea	86.7	1.7% (85.2–88.4)	2.9%	4
31 Euphrosyne	58.1	34% (38.4–77.8)	1.9%	12
704 Interamnia	38.8	4.6% (37.0–40.6)	1.3%	5
511 Davida	37.7	5.2% (35.7–39.7)	1.3%	7
532 Herculina	33	17% (27–39)	1.1%	17
15 Eunomia	31.8	0.9% (31.5–32.1)	1.1%	10
3 Juno	28.6	16% (24.0–33.2)	0.95%	11
16 Psyche	22.7	3.7% (21.9–23.5)	0.76%	35
52 Europa	22.7	7% (21.1–24.3)	0.76%	6
88 Thisbe	18.3	6% (17.2–19.4)	0.61%	14
7 Iris	16.2	5.6% (15.3–17.1)	0.54%	21
13 Egeria	16	27% (12–20)	0.53%	26
423 Diotima	16	Unknown	0.53%	24
29 Amphitrite	15.2	4% (14.8–15.6)	0.51%	23
87 Sylvia	14.78	0.4% (14.72–14.84)	0.49%	8
48 Doris	12	50% (6–18)	0.4%	18
Total	1868.0	NA	62.0%	NA

(All the data above are from Baer et al. 2011, apart from 48 Doris and 532 Herculina, which are Kochetova, 2004. The proportions assume that the total mass is 3.0×10²¹ kg.)

Significant uncertainties remain. For example, the uncertainty in the estimate of 31 Euphrosyne is enough for its low end to overlap with both 704 Interamnia and 511 Davida, which overlap each other and also with 532 Herculina, which overlaps with 15 Eunomia and 3 Juno. Juno barely overlaps 52 Europa, which in turn overlaps with 16 Psyche. That is, outside the top four, the order of all the asteroids is uncertain. However, none of the lesser asteroids, of which the most massive are thought to be 88 Thisbe (at 17–19×10¹⁸ kg), 7 Iris, 29 Amphitrite and 48 Doris (all in the range of ≈15×10¹⁸ kg), overlap with Europa or Psyche, so the first 12 asteroids in the chart above are likely to be the top dozen unless a hitherto unmeasured asteroid proves to be unexpectedly massive.

The largest asteroids with an accurately measured mass, due to the fact that they have been (and are being) studied by the probe Dawn, are 1 Ceres with a mass of 939.3±0.5×10¹⁸ kg, and 4 Vesta at 259.076±0.001×10¹⁸ kg. The third-largest asteroid with an accurately measured mass, due to the fact that it has a moon, is 87 Sylvia at 14.78±0.06×10¹⁸ kg.

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.^[7][8]

Brightest from Earth

Only Vesta regularly attains a brightness sufficient to be visible to the naked eye. 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 distribution of spectral types within different sections of the asteroid belt being such that the highest-albedo asteroids are all concentrated closer to Mars, and much lower albedo C and D types being common in the outer belt.

Those asteroids with very high eccentricities will only reach their maximum magnitude on unusual occasions when their perihelion is very close to a heliocentric conjunction with Earth, or (in the case of 99942 Apophis) when the asteroid passes very close to Earth.

Asteroid	Magnitude when brightest	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
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
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.^[9][10] It typically has an apparent magnitude of 20–22.

Slowest rotators

This list contains the slowest-rotating known minor planets with a period of at least 1000 hours, or 41 ²⁄₃ 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 (U < 2).

#	Minor planet designation	Rotation period (hours)	Δmag	Quality (U)	Orbit or family	Spectral type	Diameter (km)	Abs. mag (H)	Refs
1.	846 Lipperta	1641	0.30	2	Themis	CBU:	52.41	10.26	LCDB  · List
2.	912 Maritima	1332	0.18	3-	MBA (outer)	C	82.14	9.30	LCDB  · List
3.	9165 Raup	1320	1.34	3-	Hungaria	S	4.62	13.60	LCDB  · List
4.	1235 Schorria	1265	1.40	3	Hungaria	CX:	5.04	13.10	LCDB  · List
5.	(50719) 2000 EG140	1256	0.42	2	Eunomia	S	3.40	14.65	LCDB  · List
6.	(75482) 1999 XC173	1234.2	0.69	2	Vestian	S	2.96	15.01	LCDB  · List
7.	288 Glauke	1170	0.90	3	MBA (outer)	S	32.24	10.00	LCDB  · List
8.	(39546) 1992 DT5	1167.4	0.80	2	MBA (outer)	C	5.34	15.09	LCDB  · List
9.	4524 Barklajdetolli	1069	1.26	2	Flora	S	7.14	12.90	LCDB  · List
10.	2675 Tolkien	1060	0.75	2+	Flora	S	9.85	12.20	LCDB  · List
11.	(219774) 2001 YY145	1007.7	0.86	2	MBA (inner)	S	1.54	16.43	LCDB  · List

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Fastest rotators

This list contains the fastest-rotating minor planets with a period of less than 100 seconds, or 0.027 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 (459872) 2014 EK24, a 60-meter sized stony NEO with a period of 352 seconds, as well as (335433) 2005 UW163 and (60716) 2000 GD65, 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).

#	Minor planet designation	Rotation period		Δmag	Quality (U)	Orbit or family	Spectral type	Diameter (km)	Abs. mag (H)	Refs
		(seconds)	(hours)
1.	2014 RC	16	0.004389	0.10	n.a.	NEO	S	0.01	26.80	LCDB  · MPC
2.	2010 JL88	25	0.0068295	0.52	3	NEO	S	0.01	26.80	LCDB  · MPC
3.	2010 WA	31	0.0085799	0.22	3	NEO	S	0.00	30.00	LCDB  · MPC
4.	2016 GE1	34	0.009438	0.13	2	NEO	S	0.01	26.60	LCDB  · MPC
5.	2008 HJ	43	0.01185	0.80	3-	NEO	S	0.02	25.80	LCDB  · MPC
6.	2009 TM8	43	0.012	–	n.a.	NEO	S	0.01	28.40	LCDB  · MPC
7.	2010 SK13	52	0.0144	–	n.a.	NEO	S	0.01	27.40	LCDB  · MPC
8.	2009 BF2	57	0.01593	0.80	3	NEO	S	0.02	25.90	LCDB  · MPC
9.	2016 GS2	66	0.0182725	0.06	1	NEO	S	0.08	23.00	LCDB  · MPC
10.	2010 TG19	70	0.0193935	1.10	3	NEO	S	0.05	23.90	LCDB  · MPC
11.	2008 WA14	70	0.0195	–	n.a.	NEO	S	0.08	23.00	LCDB  · MPC
12.	2007 KE4	77	0.021408	0.38	3-	NEO	S	0.03	25.20	LCDB  · MPC
13.	2000 DO8	78	0.0217	1.39	3	NEO	S	0.04	24.54	LCDB  · MPC
14.	2014 TV	79	0.02190	0.32	2	NEO	S	0.04	24.40	LCDB  · MPC
15.	2000 WH10	80	0.02221	0.66	3-	NEO	S	0.09	22.50	LCDB  · MPC
16.	2012 HG2	82	0.0227	–	n.a.	NEO	S	0.01	27.00	LCDB  · MPC
17.	2010 TD54	83	0.0229317	0.92	3	NEO	S	0.01	28.90	LCDB  · MPC
18.	2010 TS19	83	0.023	–	n.a.	NEO	S	0.02	25.70	LCDB  · MPC
19.	2009 UD	84	0.023246	0.66	2+	NEO	S	0.01	27.20	LCDB  · MPC
20.	2015 RF36	90	0.025	0.15	2	NEO	S	0.06	23.40	LCDB  · MPC
21.	2010 XE11	96	0.0265846	0.50	3	NEO	S	0.08	23.00	LCDB  · MPC
22.	2000 UK11	96	0.026599	0.28	2	NEO	S	0.03	25.30	LCDB  · MPC
23.	2008 TC3	97	0.0269409	1.02	3	NEO	F	0.00	30.90	LCDB  · MPC

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Orbital characteristics

Retrograde

Minor planets with orbital inclinations greater than 90° (the greatest possible is 180°) orbit in a retrograde direction. As of September 2016, of the more than 700,000 minor planets known, there are only 95 known retrograde minor planets.^[11] In comparison, there are over 1920 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.^[12]

Minor planet designation	Inclination (°)	First observed/ Discovery date	Condition code	Obs. × arc	Comment	Refs
2015 TN178	90.937°	October 8, 2015	4	2542	—	MPC
2005 SB223	91.419°	September 30, 2005	1	12200	Has a well-determined orbit	MPC
2014 MH55	91.478°	June 29, 2014	9	96	—	MPC
2015 RK245	91.597°	September 12, 2015	2	182880	—	MPC
2010 EQ169	91.606°	March 8, 2010	9	32	—	MPC
2016 TK2	92.343°	July 13, 2016	5	3486	—	MPC
2016 FH13	93.486°	March 29, 2016	6	1638	—	MPC
2014 PP69	93.627°	August 5, 2014	5	4816	—	MPC
2015 BH311	95.575°	January 20, 2015	9	39	—	MPC
2014 JJ57	95.958°	May 9, 2014	3	61802	—	MPC
2014 HS150	96.456°	April 16, 2014	8	200	—	MPC
2013 BL76	98.607°	January 20, 2013	1	46716	Has a semi-major axis of 1254 AU, giving it the third largest semi-major axis of any known minor planet	MPC
2010 GW147	99.623°	April 14, 2010	3	93632	—	MPC
2011 MM4	100.446°	June 24, 2011	4	36036	—	MPC
2014 XS3	100.934°	December 8, 2014	9	55	—	MPC
2013 BN27	101.780°	January 17, 2013	7	1425	—	MPC
2008 KV42	103.483°	May 31, 2008	5	10449	—	MPC
(342842) 2008 YB3	105.031°	December 18, 2008	1	864896	—	MPC
2016 PN66	105.111°	August 14, 2016	4	15219	—	MPC
2010 GW64	105.273°	April 6, 2010	4	9576	—	MPC
2012 YO6	106.914°	December 22, 2012	4	6674	—	MPC
2009 DD47	107.431°	February 27, 2009	7	1584	—	MPC
2007 VW266	108.345°	November 12, 2007	7	2280	—	MPC
2015 MJ116	108.876°	June 27, 2015	9		—	MPC
2011 SP25	108.987°	September 20, 2011	5	3712	—	MPC
(471325) 2011 KT19	110.154°	May 21, 2011	2	350463	—	MPC
2011 OR17	110.345°	May 21, 2010	1	75548	—	MPC
2005 TJ50	110.368°	October 3, 2005	7	1488	—	MPC
2005 VX3	112.459°	November 1, 2005	4	4050	Semi-major axis of 837AU, but has a somewhat short 81-day observation arc for such a large orbit	MPC
2016 LS	114.360°	June 27, 2015	4	16800	—	MPC
2015 YY18	118.232°	December 29, 2015	4	6901	—	MPC
2010 OM1	118.689°	July 28, 2010	5	3232	—	MPC
(65407) 2002 RP120	119.106°	September 4, 2002	2	660275	This outer-planet crosser is a damocloid and SDO.	MPC
2010 PO58	121.229°	August 5, 2010	9	168	—	MPC
2010 LG61	123.732°	June 2, 2010	9	770	—	MPC
(468861) 2013 LU28	125.414°	June 8, 2013	5	21560	—	MPC
2014 SQ339	128.499°	September 9, 2014	7	1276	—	MPC
2000 DG8	129.478°	February 25, 2000	3	44460	A damocloid and SDO. Crosses all the outer planets except Neptune. Came within 0.03 AU of Ceres in 1930.[13]	MPC
2016 CO264	129.852°	February 14, 2016	4	8820	—	MPC
2013 NS11	130.340°	July 5, 2013	2	71929	—	MPC
2005 NP82	130.549°	July 6, 2005	6	8769	—	MPC
2006 RG1	133.195°	September 1, 2006	6	750	Has an orbit with a data arc of 25 days (Uncertainty Parameter=4)	MPC
2012 YE8	136.136°	December 21, 2012	7	1189	—	MPC
2009 QY6	137.654°	August 17, 2009	4	43560	—	MPC
2016 TP93	138.324°	October 9, 2016	7	704	—	MPC
2015 AO44	139.974°	November 27, 2014	2	102600	—	MPC
(336756) 2010 NV1	140.818°	July 2, 2010	1	266805	Perihelion at 9.4 AU, only 2008 KV42 has perihelion further out (154-day data arc)	MPC
2011 WS41	141.645°	November 24, 2011	8	108	—	MPC
2010 OR1	143.861°	January 25, 2010	4	35416	—	MPC
2010 BK118	143.910°	January 30, 2010	1	385148	Semi-major axis of 408 AU with perihelion at 6.1 AU in April 2012 (1 year data arc)	MPC
2016 NM56	144.045°	July 14, 2016	3	39960	—	MPC
2010 CG55	146.246°	February 15, 2010	2	124816	—	MPC
2012 HD2	146.897°	April 18, 2012	2	32314	—	MPC
2009 YS6	147.797°	December 17, 2009	1	199547	—	MPC
2006 EX52	150.240°	March 5, 2006	2	62930	q=2.58 AU and period=274 yr	MPC
1999 LE31	151.807°	June 12, 1999	3	51943	A damocloid, Jupiter- and Saturn-crossing minor planet.[14]	MPC
2016 JK24	152.313°	March 3, 2016	7	2448	—	MPC
(343158) 2009 HC82	154.496°	April 29, 2009	0	385700	NEO that has the highest relative velocity to Earth (282,900 km/hr) of objects that come within 0.5 AU of Earth.	MPC
2013 LD16	154.748°	June 6, 2013	3	14148	—	MPC
2015 FK37	155.971°	March 20, 2015	7	748	—	MPC
2010 EB46	156.531°	March 12, 2010	7	2610	—	MPC
2015 XR384	157.532°	December 9, 2015	4	5580	—	MPC
2000 HE46	158.448°	April 29, 2000	4	26400	—	MPC
2015 XX351	159.106°	December 9, 2015	3	20790	—	MPC
2012 TL139	160.036°	October 8, 2012	6	900	—	MPC
20461 Dioretsa	160.404°	June 8, 1999	2	256779	most highly inclined known minor planet from 1999/06/08-2004/02/10	MPC
2015 BZ509	162.993°	January 14, 2015	7	290	—	MPC
2006 RJ2	164.582°	September 14, 2006	7	2812	—	MPC
2006 BZ8	165.315°	January 23, 2006	2	214312	—	MPC
2004 NN8	165.466°	July 13, 2004	2	23944	Came within 0.80 AU of Saturn on 2007-Jun-05	MPC
2014 AT8	165.554°	January 3, 2014	3	42517	—	MPC
2016 DF2	167.030°	February 28, 2016	9	26	—	MPC
(330759) 2008 SO218	170.318°	September 30, 2008	1	733950	—	MPC
2014 UV114	170.510°	October 26, 2014	9	34	—	MPC
2014 CW14	170.747°	February 10, 2014	7	1938	most highly inclined known minor planet from 2004/02/10-2005/11/01	MPC
2016 EJ203	170.911°	March 11, 2016	7	1740	—	MPC
2006 LM1	172.138°	June 3, 2006	9	48	Has a data arc of only 2 days (Uncertainty Parameter=E), but has a very high inclination	MPC
(434620) 2005 VD	172.866°	November 1, 2005	2	130989	most highly inclined known minor planet from 2005/11/01-2013/06/01	MPC
2013 LA2	175.189°	June 1, 2013	8	1075	Has the highest inclination of any known minor planet	MPC

^ 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.

Highly inclined

Minor planet designation	Inclination	Discovery date	Comment	Refs
1 Ceres	10.593°	January 1, 1801	most highly inclined known minor planet from 1801/01/01-1802/03/28	MPC
2 Pallas	34.841°	March 28, 1802	most highly inclined known minor planet from 1802/03/28-1920/10/31	MPC
944 Hidalgo	42.525°	October 31, 1920	most highly inclined known minor planet from 1920/10/31-1950/05/22	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 1935/08/30-1980/06/14	MPC
1580 Betulia	52.083°	May 22, 1950	most highly inclined known minor planet from 1950/05/22-1973/07/04	MPC
2938 Hopi	41.436°	June 14, 1980	Most highly inclined known main-belt asteroid from 1980/06/14-2000/09/20	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.	MPC
(22653) 1998 QW2	45.794°	August 17, 1998	Most highly inclined known main-belt asteroid from 1998/08/17-1998/10/19	MPC
(88043) 2000 UE110	51.998°	October 29, 2000	First main-belt asteroid discovered and numbered to have an inclination greater than 50°.	MPC
(138925) 2001 AU43	72.132°	January 4, 2001	A Mars-crosser and near-Earth object.	MPC
(127546) 2002 XU93	77.904°	December 4, 2002	A damocloid and SDO. It is almost a Uranus outer-grazer.	MPC
(196256) 2003 EH1	70.790°	March 6, 2003	A Mars-crosser, near-Earth object and Jupiter inner-grazer.	MPC
1998 UQ1	64.281°	October 19, 1998	Most highly inclined known main-belt asteroid from 1998/10/19-2007/11/01	MPC
(467372) 2004 LG	70.725°	June 9, 2004	A Mercury- through Mars-crosser and near-Earth object.	MPC
2007 VR6	68.659°	November 1, 2007	Most highly inclined known main-belt asteroid from 2007/11/01-2008/09/26	MPC
2008 SB85	74.247°	September 26, 2008	Most highly inclined known main-belt asteroid from 2008/09/26-2010/03/08(?)	MPC
2010 EQ169	91.606°	March 8, 2010	Most highly inclined known main-belt asteroid(?) (orbit is not well-known)	MPC

Trojans

• Earth trojans: 2010 TK7.
• Mars trojans: (121514) 1999 UJ7, 5261 Eureka, (101429) 1998 VF31, (311999) 2007 NS2, (385250) 2001 DH47, 2011 SC191, 2011 UN63, and the candidate 2011 SL25.
• Jupiter trojans: the first one was discovered in 1906, 588 Achilles, and the current total is over 6,000.

Record-setting close approaches to Earth

Timeline

Landmark asteroids

Name	Diameter (km)	Discovered	Comment
5 Astraea	117	December 8, 1845	First asteroid discovered after original four (38 years later)
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
92 Undina	126	1867 July 7	Created in one of the largest asteroid-on-asteroid collisions of the past 100 million years
216 Kleopatra	217×94	April 10, 1880	Metallic asteroid with "dog-bone" shape and 2 satellites
243 Ida	56×24×21	September 29, 1884	First asteroid known to have a moon (determined in 1993)
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
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
1125 China		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
1902 Shaposhnikov	97	April 18, 1972	The most recent main-belt asteroid discovered that is ~100+ km in diameter
2063 Bacchus	1.1×1.1×2.6	April 24, 1977
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[15]
5261 Eureka	~2–4	June 20, 1990	First Mars trojan (Lagrangian point L5) discovered
11885 Summanus		September 25, 1990	First automated discovery of a near-Earth object (NEO)
(29075) 1950 DA	1.1	February 23, 1950	Will approach Earth very closely in 2880, collision possibility
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.
(433953) 1997 XR2	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)
1998 KY26	0.030	June 2, 1998	Approached within 800,000 km of Earth
2002 AA29	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.
2008 TC3	~0.003	October 6, 2008	First Earth-impactor to be spotted before impact (on October 7, 2008)
2010 TK7	~0.3	October 2010	First Earth trojan to be discovered
2014 RC	~0.017	September 1, 2014	Asteroid with fastest rotation: 16.2 seconds

Spacecraft targets

Name	Diameter (km)	Discovered	Spacecraft	Year(s)	Closest approach (km)	closest approach (asteroid radii)	Notes	Landmark(s)
1 Ceres	952	January 1, 1801	Dawn	2014–present	approx. 200 (planned)	0.42	Dawn took its first "close up" picture of Ceres in December 2014, and entered orbit in March 2015	First dwarf planet visited by a spacecraft, largest asteroid visited by a spacecraft
4 Vesta	529	March 29, 1807	Dawn	2011–2012	210	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
21 Lutetia	120×100×80	November 15, 1852	Rosetta	2010	3,162	64.9	Flyby on 10 July 2010	Largest asteroid visited by a spacecraft at the time
243 Ida	56×24×21	September 29, 1884	Galileo	1993	2,390	152	Flyby; discovered Dactyl	First asteroid with a moon visited by a spacecraft, largest asteroid visited by spacecraft at the time
253 Mathilde	66×48×46	November 12, 1885	NEAR Shoemaker	1997	1,212	49.5	Flyby	Largest asteroid visited by a spacecraft at the time
433 Eros	13×13×33	August 13, 1898	NEAR Shoemaker	1998–2001	0	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
951 Gaspra	18.2×10.5×8.9	July 30, 1916	Galileo	1991	1,600	262	Flyby	first asteroid visited by a spacecraft
2867 Šteins	4.6	November 4, 1969	Rosetta	2008	800	302	Flyby	First asteroid visited by the ESA
4179 Toutatis	4.5×~2	February 10, 1934	Chang'e 2	2012	3.2	0.70	Flyby[16]	Closest asteroid flyby, first asteroid visited by China
5535 Annefrank	4.0	March 23, 1942	Stardust	2002	3,079	1230	Flyby
9969 Braille	2.2×0.6	May 27, 1992	Deep Space 1	1999	26	12.7	Flyby; followed by flyby of Comet Borrelly
25143 Itokawa	0.5×0.3×0.2	September 26, 1998	Hayabusa	2005	0	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

Numbered minor planets that are also comets

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 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 1979 OW7
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 2001 OG₁₀₈.

Minor planets that were misnamed and renamed

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.^[17]

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	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 1957 UN1 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 1957 UN1, and 1928 UF remained lost. In 1986, the object 1986 QK1 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	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.

See also

• Asteroid mining
• Asteroid Redirect Mission (proposed NASA mission)
• Centaur (minor planet)
• List of numbered Aten asteroids
• List of Amor asteroids
• List of Apollo asteroids
• List of asteroids named after people
• List of asteroids named after places
• List of instrument-resolved minor planets
• List of meteor air bursts
• List of minor planet moons
• List of Venus-crossing minor planets
• List of Earth-crossing minor planets
• List of Jupiter-crossing minor planets
• List of Mars-crossing minor planets
• List of Mercury-crossing minor planets
• List of Neptune-crossing minor planets
• List of Saturn-crossing minor planets
• List of Solar System objects by size
• List of Uranus-crossing minor planets
• Scattered disc object

Books

• Dictionary of Minor Planet Names, 5th ed.: Prepared on Behalf of Commission 20 Under the Auspices of the International Astronomical Union, Lutz D. Schmadel, ISBN 3-540-00238-3

References

1. Savage, Don; Jones, Tammy; Villard, Ray (1995). "Asteroid or Mini-Planet? Hubble Maps the Ancient Surface of Vesta". Hubble Site News Release STScI-1995-20. Retrieved 2006-10-17.
2. Carry, B.; et al. (2009). "Physical properties of (2) Pallas" (PDF). Retrieved 13 September 2015.
3. "JPL Small-Body Database Search Engine: asteroids and orbital class (IMB or MBA or OMB) and diameter > 120 (km)". JPL's Solar System Dynamics Group. Retrieved 2012-04-16.
4. "Recent Asteroid Mass Determinations". Maintained by Jim Baer. Last updated 2010-12-12. Access date 2011-09-02.
5. Baer, James; Steven R. Chesley (2008). "Astrometric masses of 21 asteroids, and an integrated asteroid ephemeris" (PDF). Celestial Mechanics and Dynamical Astronomy. Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2007. 100 (2008): 27–42. Bibcode:2008CeMDA.100...27B. doi:10.1007/s10569-007-9103-8. Retrieved 2008-11-11.
6. Pitjeva, E. V. (2004). "Estimations of masses of the largest asteroids and the main asteroid belt from ranging to planets, Mars orbiters and landers". 35th COSPAR Scientific Assembly. Held 18–25 July 2004, in Paris, France. p. 2014. Bibcode:2004cosp.meet.2014P.
7. Michalak, G. (2001). "Determination of asteroid masses". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 374 (2): 703–711. Bibcode:2001A&A...374..703M. doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20010731. Retrieved 2008-11-10.
8. Michalak, G. (2001), assumed masses of perturbing asteroids used in calculations of perturbations of the test asteroids.
9. "(99942) Apophis Ephemerides for 13 Apr 2029". NEODyS (Near Earth Objects - Dynamic Site). Retrieved 2011-05-05.
10. "(99942) Apophis Ephemerides for 13 Apr 2029". Minor Planet Center Ephemeris Service - Dynamic Site).
11. "JPL Small-Body Database Search Engine: Asteroids and i > 90 (deg)". JPL Solar System Dynamics. Retrieved 2016-09-12.
12. Morais, M.H.M.; F. Namouni. "Asteroids in retrograde resonance with Jupiter and Saturn". Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society Letters (in press). arXiv:1308.0216. Bibcode:2013MNRAS.436L..30M. doi:10.1093/mnrasl/slt106.
13. 2008 DG8 and Ceres in 1930
14. 1999 LE31 approaches to Jupiter and Saturn
15. "1994 Release #9412" (Press release). NASA. 1994-02-18. Retrieved 2008-04-17.
16. Chang'E 2 images of Toutatis – December 13, 2012 – The Planetary Society
17. http://pdssbn.astro.umd.edu/SBNast/archive/DISCOVER/discnote.tab

External links

• Lists and plots: Minor Planets
• PDS Asteroid Data Archive
• SBN Small Bodies Data Archive
• NASA Near Earth Object Program
• Major News About Minor Objects