(838404) Dickson Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 14 April 1993 by C. V. Cox E. Schulman at Kitt Peak.
Dickson Despommier (1940–2025) was an American professor of Public Health and Microbiology at Columbia University. In 1999 he proposed the modern concept of vertical farming. In addition to his scientific research, Dickson championed science education by co-hosting the This Week in Virology podcast and Parasites Without Borders.Naming citation (WGSBN Bull. 6, #3, 15), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
👶 Dickson as a baby name🐶 Dickson as a dog name
Where Dickson is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Dickson is 3.47 au from the Sun and 2.67 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 838404 |
| Provisional designation | 2014 GK50 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 16.96 |
| Orbital period | 5.26 years |
| Semi-major axis | 3.02 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.45 – 3.59 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.189 |
| Inclination | 11.1° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.48 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.