(12610) Hafez Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 24 September 1960 by van Houten, C. J., van Houten-Groeneveld, I., Gehrels, T. at Palomar.
Schamsoddin Mohammed Hãfez (1324-1390) was a Persian poet. Hãfez means “a person who knows The Koran by heart”. He wrote in Persian and Arabic. When the Mongolians came to Persia they respected Hãfez. His lyric poetry is admired in Europe, and it influenced Goethe in his West-östlicher Divan.Naming citation (20071124/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Hafez is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Hafez is 2.67 au from the Sun and 3.27 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 12610 |
| Provisional designation | 2551 P-L |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 5.14 km (#10,360 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.266 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 13.76 |
| Orbital period | 4.80 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.84 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.55 – 3.14 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.103 |
| Inclination | 1.73° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.54 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also discovered on 24 September 1960
- (1743) Schmidt
- (1744) Harriet
- (1776) Kuiper
- (1777) Gehrels
- (1795) Woltjer
- (1808) Bellerophon
- (1809) Prometheus
- (1810) Epimetheus
- (1811) Bruwer
- (1812) Gilgamesh
- (1846) Bengt
- (1868) Thersites