500
1,000
1,500
2,000
2,500
3,000
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
Minor planets grouped by the first letter of their name. Names rarely begin with "Q" or "X", but often with "S".[a]

This is a list of named minor planets in an alphabetical, case-insensitive order grouped by the first letter of their name.[a][b] New namings, typically proposed by the discoverer and approved by the Working Group for Small Bodies Nomenclature (WGSBN) of the International Astronomical Union, are published nowadays in their WGSBN Bulletin and summarized in a dedicated list several times a year.[1]

Over the last four decades, the list has grown significantly with an average rate of 492 new namings published every year (or 1.35 namings per day). While in March 1979,[2] only 1924 minor planets had received a name and completed the designation process, as of 21 November 2023, the list contains 24,514 named objects.[1] This, however, only accounts for 3.90% of all numbered bodies, as there are over 629,000 minor planets with a well established orbit which is a precondition for receiving a name. Of all these minor-planet names, 1311 contain diacritical marks.[3]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ a b For a minor-planet name starting with a character that is not convertible into a Latin one, the second character of its name is used instead. Examples include 469705 ǂKá̦gára (added to names starting with "K") and 374710 ʻOʻo (to be found in the partial list for letter "O").

References

  1. ^ a b "WGSBN Bulletin Archive". Working Group for Small Bodies Nomenclature. 21 November 2023. Retrieved 21 November 2023.
  2. ^ Pilcher, Frederick (December 1979). "An Updated Alphabetical List of Names of Minor Planets". The Minor Planet Bulletin. 7: 11–15. Bibcode:1979MPBu....7...11P. Retrieved 26 June 2018.
  3. ^ "Minor Planet Names: Alphabetical List". Minor Planet Center. 16 October 2023. Retrieved 21 November 2023.
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