(16459) Barth Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 28 November 1989 by F. Borngen at Tautenburg.
The Swiss Protestant Reformed theologian Karl Barth (1886-1968), ousted from his post in Germany, was professor in Basel beginning in 1935. In Germany, he is known as the “Vater der Bekennende Kirche”. His main works are The Epistle to the Romans and Ecclesiastical Dogmatics.Naming citation (20001111/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Barth is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Barth is 1.98 au from the Sun and 1.42 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 16459 |
| Provisional designation | 1989 WE4 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 14.71 |
| Orbital period | 3.75 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.41 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 1.89 – 2.93 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.215 |
| Inclination | 2.69° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 0.896 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Karl
- (1690) Mayrhofer
- (4463) Marschwarzschild
- (5171) Augustesen
- (6059) Diefenbach
- (6597) Kreil
- (6712) Hornstein
- (10099) Glazebrook
- (11434) Lohnert
- (13816) Stulpner
- (13977) Frisch
- (14014) Munchhausen
- (14100) Weierstrass
All asteroids named after someone called Karl