(16946) Farnham Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 25 April 1998 by LONEOS at Anderson Mesa.
Tony L. Farnham (b. 1964), an astronomer at the University of Maryland, has studied the dynamics of cometary dust and determined comet rotation states. He has also contributed to the Deep Impact mission by improving the standardization of filter photometry.Naming citation (20050721/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Farnham is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Farnham is 2.65 au from the Sun and 3.28 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 16946 |
| Provisional designation | 1998 HJ51 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 3.43 km (#14,152 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.414 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 14.19 |
| Orbital period | 3.68 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.39 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.04 – 2.73 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.143 |
| Inclination | 6.59° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.05 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
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