(174801) Etscorn Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 23 November 2003 by W. H. Ryan at Etscorn.
Frank Etscorn (b. 1945), a professor of psychology at New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, is the inventor of the nicotine patch. As an avid amateur astronomer, he leveraged the success of this effort into the creation of the university's Etscorn Campus Observatory.Naming citation (20081113/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Etscorn is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Etscorn is 2.69 au from the Sun and 3.68 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 174801 |
| Provisional designation | 2003 WZ165 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 16.98 |
| Orbital period | 3.60 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.35 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 1.90 – 2.80 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.191 |
| Inclination | 4.19° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 0.914 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Frank
- (2434) Bateson
- (4772) Frankdrake
- (5251) Bradwood
- (5574) Seagrave
- (7085) Franksienkiewicz
- (7455) Podosek
- (7934) Sinatra
- (8310) Seelos
- (8732) Champion
- (9662) Frankhubbard
- (9681) Sherwoodrowland
- (11689) Frankxu
All asteroids named after someone called Frank