(9775) Joeferguson Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 19 July 1993 by E. W. Elst at La Silla.
Joe Ferguson (1962-2001) was director of the geography education outreach program for the National Geographic Society. While accompanying a group of students and teachers on an NGS-sponsored field trip to the Californian Channel Islands, he perished on the aircraft that was crashed by terrorists into the Pentagon.Naming citation (20011230/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Joeferguson is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Joeferguson is 2.56 au from the Sun and 3.40 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 9775 |
| Provisional designation | 1993 OH12 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 3.82 km (#13,180 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.231 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 14.72 |
| Orbital period | 4.22 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.61 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.21 – 3.01 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.153 |
| Inclination | 2.57° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.20 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
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