(129061) Karlfortney Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 4 November 2004 by CSS at Catalina.
Karl Fortney (b. 1962) is the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft Mechanisms Certified Principal Engineer. He was a mechanical engineer on the MAVEN and Juno missions as well as the MSL Aeroshell.Naming citation (MPC batch dated 2016-08-18), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Karlfortney is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Karlfortney is 2.97 au from the Sun and 3.77 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 129061 |
| Provisional designation | 2004 VM22 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 3.09 km (#15,002 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.169 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 15.43 |
| Orbital period | 5.12 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.97 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.79 – 3.14 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.0591 |
| Inclination | 9.81° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.81 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Karl
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- (4463) Marschwarzschild
- (5171) Augustesen
- (6059) Diefenbach
- (6597) Kreil
- (6712) Hornstein
- (10099) Glazebrook
- (11434) Lohnert
- (13816) Stulpner
- (13977) Frisch
- (14014) Munchhausen
- (14100) Weierstrass
All asteroids named after someone called Karl