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 | 1902 September 3 | Created in one of the largest asteroid-on-asteroid collisions of the past 100 million years |
| 624 Hektor | 370×195 | February 10, 1907 | Largest Jovian trojan asteroid discovered |
| 719 Albert | 2.4 | October 3, 1911 | Last numbered asteroid to be lost then recovered |
| 944 Hidalgo | 38 | October 31, 1920 | Longest orbital period of any traditional asteroid, but with a semi-major axis beyond Jupiter, can be thought of as a centaur. |
| 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 | Apollo class asteroid; perihelion is closer to the Sun than Mercury |
| 2060 Chiron | 95P/Chiron | October 18, 1977 | The first minor planet discovered among the outer planets, establishing the class of centaurs. Later found to display cometary behavior |
| 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 |
| 5261 Eureka | ~2–4 | June 20, 1990 | First Martian trojan asteroid (Lagrangian point L5) discovered |
| (11885) 1990 SS | 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 |
| 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. |
| 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 HJ | .024x.012 | April 24, 2008 | Asteroid with fastest rotation: 42.7 seconds |
| 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 asteroid to be discovered |
Read more about this topic: List Of Notable Asteroids
Famous quotes containing the word landmark:
“They throw in Drummer Hodge, to rest
Uncoffined—just as found:
His landmark is a kopje-crest
That breaks the veldt around;”
—Thomas Hardy (1840–1928)