Meanings of minor planet names: 57001–58000

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. Public Domain 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]

57001–57100 edit

Named minor planet Provisional This minor planet was named for... Ref · Catalog
There are no named minor planets in this number range

57101–57200 edit

Named minor planet Provisional This minor planet was named for... Ref · Catalog
57140 Gaddi 2001 PG29 Riccardo Gaddi, amateur astronomer and popular expositor JPL · 57140

57201–57300 edit

Named minor planet Provisional This minor planet was named for... Ref · Catalog
There are no named minor planets in this number range

57301–57400 edit

Named minor planet Provisional This minor planet was named for... Ref · Catalog
57359 Robcrawford 2001 RC Robert W. Crawford, American energy and environmental consultant, amateur astronomer and physicist JPL · 57359

57401–57500 edit

Named minor planet Provisional This minor planet was named for... Ref · Catalog
57424 Caelumnoctu 2001 SP22 (19)57–4–24, 1957 April 24, is the date of the transmission of the first edition of the BBC television series The Sky at Night (Caelum noctu in Latin) JPL · 57424
57471 Mariemarsina 2001 SZ115 Marie Marsina (born 1952) currently serves as the President of the National Art League in New York City and as Vice President of the Douglaston Civic Association. She is a graduate of Pace University's Lubin School of Business. JPL · 57471

57501–57600 edit

Named minor planet Provisional This minor planet was named for... Ref · Catalog
57509 Sly 2001 SY270 Sylvestre (Sly) Maurice (born 1966), a planetary astronomer specialized in lunar and Martian exploration. He has been a lead-developer of Martian rover instruments. JPL · 57509
57567 Crikey 2001 TS56 Steve Irwin (1962–2006), an Australian zookeeper and conservationist, known for his TV-series The Crocodile Hunter. "Crikey!", was his signature phrase. JPL · 57567


57601–57700 edit

Named minor planet Provisional This minor planet was named for... Ref · Catalog
57658 Nilrem 2001 UJ1 Jean-Claude Merlin (born 1954), French astronomer, founder-president of the Burgundy Astronomical Society (French: Société astronomique de Bourgogne) and discoverer of minor planets. "Nilrem" is "Merlin" backwards, because of pre-existing 2598 Merlin. MPC · 57658

57701–57800 edit

Named minor planet Provisional This minor planet was named for... Ref · Catalog
There are no named minor planets in this number range

57801–57900 edit

Named minor planet Provisional This minor planet was named for... Ref · Catalog
57868 Pupin 2001 YD Mihajlo Pupin (1858–1935), a Serbian-American physicist and humanitarian. JPL · 57868
57879 Cesarechiosi 2002 AD1 Cesare Chiosi, Italian professor of theoretical astrophysics at the University of Padua JPL · 57879

57901–58000 edit

Named minor planet Provisional This minor planet was named for... Ref · Catalog
57901 Hitchens 2002 CH275 Christopher Hitchens (1949–2011) was a social, religious and literary critic of broad interests, who listed "disputation" among his hobbies JPL · 57901

References edit

  1. ^ "WGSBN Bulletin Archive". Working Group Small Body Nomenclature. 14 May 2021. Retrieved 16 May 2021.
  2. ^ "MPC/MPO/MPS Archive". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 27 July 2016.
  3. ^ "JPL – Solar System Dynamics: Discovery Circumstances". Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 25 June 2019.
  4. ^ Schmadel, Lutz D. (2003). Dictionary of Minor Planet Names. Springer Berlin Heidelberg. ISBN 978-3-540-00238-3. Retrieved 27 July 2016.
  5. ^ 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.
  6. ^ Herget, Paul (1968). The Names of the Minor Planets. Cincinnati, Ohio: Minor Planet Center, Cincinnati Observatory. OCLC 224288991.
  7. ^ "Guide to Minor Body Astrometry – When can I name my discovery?". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
  8. ^ "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.


Preceded by Meanings of minor planet names
List of minor planets: 57,001–58,000
Succeeded by