(10601) Hiwatashi Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 16 October 1996 by A. Nakamura at Kuma Kogen.
Named in honor of Kenji Hiwatashi (b. 1922), electrical engineer at NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation) from 1947 to 1979, on the occasion of his Kiju celebration (77th birthday). A pioneer in the field of human visual information processing research, Hiwatashi authored nine books and co-authored another 20, some of which have been the fundamental textbooks used by researchers in this field. More recently, he served as a professor at the Institute of Information Sciences and Electronics, University of Tsukuba (1979-1986), and as professor of electronics at Meisei University (1986-1996).Naming citation (19990728/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Hiwatashi is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Hiwatashi is 3.76 au from the Sun and 4.56 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 10601 |
| Provisional designation | 1996 UC |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 12.3 km (#3,982 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.0680 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 13.37 |
| Orbital period | 5.57 years |
| Semi-major axis | 3.14 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.33 – 3.95 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.257 |
| Inclination | 2.99° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.33 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Kenji
- (9099) Kenjitanabe
- (9416) Miyahara
- (21237) Suematsu
- (22395) Ourakenji
- (24962) Kenjitoba
- (117582) Kenjikawai
All asteroids named after someone called Kenji