(9826) Ehrenfreund Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 16 October 1977 by van Houten, C. J., van Houten-Groeneveld, I., Gehrels, T. at Palomar.
As both a biochemist and an astronomer, Pascale Ehrenfreund (b. 1960), currently at the Leiden Observatory, qualified as an expert on several space missions investigating dust and organic molecules in space. As an APART fellow of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, she encouraged international cooperation.Naming citation (20001111/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Ehrenfreund is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Ehrenfreund is 3.24 au from the Sun and 4.15 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 9826 |
| Provisional designation | 2114 T-3 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 8.38 km (#6,243 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.191 |
| Rotation period | 3.75 hours |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 13.24 |
| Orbital period | 5.18 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.99 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.72 – 3.27 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.0917 |
| Inclination | 8.94° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.72 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Pascale
All asteroids named after someone called Pascale
Also discovered on 16 October 1977
- (3798) de Jager
- (3936) Elst
- (4044) Erikhog
- (4108) Rakos
- (4722) Agelaos
- (4753) Phidias
- (4754) Panthoos
- (5610) Balster
- (5699) Munch
- (5700) Homerus
- (5984) Lysippus
- (6055) Brunelleschi