(9592) Clairaut Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 8 April 1991 by E. W. Elst at La Silla.
Alexis-Claude Clairaut (1713-1765) was one of the greatest mathematicians of all time. He predicted with an error of only about one month the perihelion date of Halley's comet in 1759. Well-known for the Clairaut partial differential equations, he was much esteemed for his rationalistic views.Naming citation (20030501/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Clairaut is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Clairaut is 2.70 au from the Sun and 1.91 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 9592 |
| Provisional designation | 1991 GK4 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 6.47 km (#8,287 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.184 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 13.32 |
| Orbital period | 4.77 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.84 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.62 – 3.05 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.0752 |
| Inclination | 1.13° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.63 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Claude
- (4481) Herbelin
- (12064) Guiraudon
- (12996) Claudedomingue
- (14826) Nicollier
- (14885) Paskoff
- (18838) Shannon
- (19226) Peiresc
- (22647) Levi-Strauss
- (33402) Canizares
- (35621) Lorius
- (37785) Nougaro
- (39543) Aubriet
All asteroids named after someone called Claude
Also discovered on 8 April 1991
- (6487) Tonyspear
- (6647) Josse
- (6912) Grimm
- (7126) Cureau
- (7179) Gassendi
- (8277) Machu-Picchu
- (8369) Miyata
- (8665) Daun-Eifel
- (8852) Buxus
- (9180) Samsagan
- (9339) Kimnovak
- (9757) Felixdejager
More named asteroids discovered by E. W. Elst
- (3631) Sigyn
- (3784) Chopin
- (3870) Mayre
- (3903) Kliment Ohridski
- (3910) Liszt
- (3912) Troja
- (3918) Brel
- (4038) Kristina
- (4226) Damiaan
- (4342) Freud
- (4344) Buxtehude
- (4345) Rachmaninoff
← (9590) Hyria · (9594) Garstang →