(8028) Joeengle Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 30 August 1991 by R. H. McNaught at Siding Spring.
Air Force test pilot Joe Engle (b. 1932) was the eighth pilot to fly the X-15 and made a total of 16 flights. He received Air Force astronaut wings for a flight that took him to 85500 meters. Engle also flew the Space Shuttle, becoming the only person who reached space before being selected as an astronaut.Naming citation (20120207/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Joeengle is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Joeengle is 3.56 au from the Sun and 3.74 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 8028 |
| Provisional designation | 1991 QE |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 19.1 km (#2,332 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.0580 |
| Rotation period | 9.10 hours |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 12.32 |
| Orbital period | 5.51 years |
| Semi-major axis | 3.12 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.47 – 3.77 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.207 |
| Inclination | 23.3° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.52 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Joe
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- (31451) Joenickell
- (47620) Joeplassmann
- (211376) Joethurston
- (305661) Joejackson
All asteroids named after someone called Joe