(228883) Cliffsimak Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 2 August 2003 by B. Christophe at Saint-Sulpice.
Clifford Donald Simak (1904-1988) was an American science-fiction writer. He received three Hugo awards and was named Grand Master in 1977. The discoverer's favorites among his novels are Time And Again, Way Station and Ring Around The Sun.Naming citation (20100330/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Cliffsimak is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Cliffsimak is 3.21 au from the Sun and 3.66 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 228883 |
| Provisional designation | 2003 PT4 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 3.25 km (#14,606 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.167 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 15.48 |
| Orbital period | 5.23 years |
| Semi-major axis | 3.01 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.69 – 3.34 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.108 |
| Inclination | 9.39° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.70 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Clifford
All asteroids named after someone called Clifford