(16682) Donati Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 18 March 1994 by Cavagna, M., Giuliani, V. at Sormano.
The Tuscan astronomer Giovanni Battista Donati (1826-1873) made important contributions to the early development of stellar spectroscopy, being also the first to observe a cometary spectrum. He was director of the Florence Observatory and discoverer of six comets, among them the spectacular naked-eye comet C/1858 L1.Naming citation (20040713/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Donati is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Donati is 2.16 au from the Sun and 1.42 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 16682 |
| Provisional designation | 1994 FB |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 2.19 km (#16,797 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.307 |
| Rotation period | 4.67 hours |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 15.2 |
| Orbital period | 3.36 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.24 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.13 – 2.36 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.0502 |
| Inclination | 2.29° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.15 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Giovanni
- (6509) Giovannipratesi
- (6852) Nannibignami
- (7317) Cabot
- (7328) Casanova
- (8123) Canaletto
- (9878) Sostero
- (10928) Caprara
- (12433) Barbieri
- (12812) Cioni
- (15036) Giovannianselmi
- (15950) Dallago
- (16745) Zappa
All asteroids named after someone called Giovanni