(42981) Jenniskens Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 2 October 1999 by Ondrejov at Ondrejov.
Peter Jenniskens (b. 1962), meteor astronomer at NASA Ames, organized several successful airborne missions (Leonid multi-instrument aircraft campaigns) to observe the Leonid returns from 1998 to 2002. He has substantially improved our knowledge of the behavior of meteor streams.Naming citation (WGSBN Bull. 5, #21, 5), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Jenniskens is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Jenniskens is 2.21 au from the Sun and 2.83 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 42981 |
| Provisional designation | 1999 TY224 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 2.60 km (#16,058 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.164 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 15.8 |
| Orbital period | 4.04 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.54 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.18 – 2.90 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.141 |
| Inclination | 5.94° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.17 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
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