(20314) Johnharrison Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 28 March 1998 by J. Broughton at Reedy Creek.
John Harrison (1693-1776) was an English clockmaker who worked for decades on the problem of finding longitude at sea, developing a portable timepiece of unprecedented accuracy. This was a great step forward in improving maritime safety and enabled the charting of the world's oceans.Naming citation (20011230/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Johnharrison is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Johnharrison is 2.13 au from the Sun and 3.13 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 20314 |
| Provisional designation | 1998 FN126 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 3.75 km (#13,332 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.239 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 14.56 |
| Orbital period | 3.17 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.16 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 1.81 – 2.50 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.160 |
| Inclination | 2.73° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 0.795 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called John
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All asteroids named after someone called John
Also discovered on 28 March 1998
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