3552 Don Quixote is a small Amor, Mars-crossing, Jupiter-crossing, potentially hazardous asteroid. It has a highly inclined comet-like orbit, and measures about 19 km in diameter. Its rotation period is 7.7 hours. It was discovered by Paul Wild in 1983, and is named after the comic knight who is the eponymous hero of Cervantes' Spanish novel Don Quixote (1605).
Don Quixote is suspected to be an extinct comet. Don Quixote is frequently perturbed by Jupiter.
Famous quotes containing the word quixote:
“I wonder, Diz, if this Don Quixote hasn’t got the jump on all of us. Wonder if it isn’t a curse to go wised up like you and me.”
—Sidney Buchman (1902–1975)