(6317) Dreyfus Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 16 October 1990 by E. W. Elst at La Silla.
Named for the infamous Dreyfus case, which dominated French politics, reinforced religious feelings, disrupted the old party system and divided the nation for more than ten years. In 1894 a French Jewish army officer, Alfred Dreyfus, was wrongfully convicted of high treason. The famous French writer Emile Zola came to his defense by writing the emotional article “J'accuse” in the journal l'Aurore. In 1906 Dreyfus was rehabilitated and decorated with the Légion d'honneur.Naming citation (WGSBN Bull. 4, #10, 5), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Dreyfus is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Dreyfus is 2.29 au from the Sun and 2.25 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 6317 |
| Provisional designation | 1990 UP3 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 5.64 km (#9,504 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.153 |
| Rotation period | 5.25 hours |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 14.04 |
| Orbital period | 3.36 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.24 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.11 – 2.37 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.0577 |
| Inclination | 5.84° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.12 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also discovered on 16 October 1990
- (5135) Nibutani
- (5190) Fry
- (6606) Makino
- (6719) Gallaj
- (7650) Kaname
- (7763) Crabeels
- (8164) Andreasdoppler
- (9334) Moesta
- (9587) Bonpland
- (10769) Minas Gerais
- (12708) Van Straten
- (15729) Yumikoitahana
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
← (6316) Mendez · (6318) Cronkite →