(129980) Catherinejohnson Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 28 October 1999 by CSS at Catalina.
Catherine Johnson (b. 1967) is a planetary geophysicist and a Co-Investigator for the OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Sample Return Mission and for the InSight mission to Mars. She was a Participating Scientist on the MESSENGER mission to Mercury and is a Fellow of the American Geophysical Union.Naming citation (MPC batch dated 2016-11-14), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Catherinejohnson is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Catherinejohnson is 2.89 au from the Sun and 3.85 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 129980 |
| Provisional designation | 1999 UN42 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 15.95 |
| Orbital period | 3.59 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.34 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 1.74 – 2.95 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.260 |
| Inclination | 5.41° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 0.737 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Catherine
- (10465) Olkin
- (15008) Delahodde
- (16972) Neish
- (22983) Schlingheyde
- (23804) Haber
- (23867) Cathsoto
- (25693) Ishitani
- (28169) Cathconte
- (28640) Cathywong
- (30259) Catherineli
- (32264) Cathjesslai
- (33334) Turon
All asteroids named after someone called Catherine