Post a Comment On: SatTrackCam Leiden (b)log

This weekend, I got notified of the fact that the Committee on mall Body Nomenclature of the International Astronomical Union (IAU) has decided that asteroid 183294 (also know by its temporary designation 2002 TB382) will henceforth be officially named:

183294 Langbroek

The citation text from Minor Planet Circular # 63643:

(183294) Langbroek = 2002 TB382
Discovered 2002 Oct. 9 by NEAT at Palomar.
Marco Langbroek (b. 1970) is a Dutch archeologist and amateur astronomer whose main interests lie in meteor astronomy. He is an avid meteor observer, active within the Dutch Meteor Society. The name was suggested by S. Kürti.

Asteroid 183294 Langbroek is a main belt asteroid with an estimated 2.5 km diameter (H 15.6), has it's perihelion at 2.69 AU, aphelion at 3.39 AU and an orbital inclination of 6.34 degrees. It revolves around the sun once each 5.3 years, between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. It was discovered on images taken 9 October 2002 with the 1.2 meter Schmidt telescope of the NEAT program at Mt. Palomar.

I feel very honoured by this asteroid naming.

Here's a blink of the discovery triplet, made on 9 Oktober 2002 with the NEAT 1.2m Schmidt telescope at Mt. Palomar:

[Image]

Below is a plot of the orbit:

(click image to enlarge)
[Image]

For an interactive orbit plot (JPL website), click here.