(12161) Avienius Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 29 September 1973 by van Houten, C. J., van Houten-Groeneveld, I., Gehrels, T. at Palomar.
Postumius Rufius Festus Avienius, who lived in the second half of the fourth century, was a Latin poet from Etruria. He composed didactic poems on astronomy and geography. His Aratea was based on earlier Latin translations of Aratus' Phaenomena. The name was suggested by R. H. van Gent.Naming citation (20100527/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Avienius is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Avienius is 2.29 au from the Sun and 2.93 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 12161 |
| Provisional designation | 1158 T-2 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Rotation period | 3.13 hours |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 15.99 |
| Orbital period | 3.72 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.40 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 1.91 – 2.89 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.205 |
| Inclination | 1.69° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 0.916 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also discovered on 29 September 1973
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- (4357) Korinthos
- (4549) Burkhardt
- (4721) Atahualpa
- (4752) Myron
- (4876) Strabo
- (4978) Seitz
- (5151) Weerstra
- (5197) Rottmann
- (5243) Clasien
- (5244) Amphilochos
- (5266) Rauch