(216624) Kaufer Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 9 December 2002 by Heppenheim at Heppenheim.
German astronomer Andreas Kaufer (b. 1968) is director of operations at the European Southern Observatory's Paranal Observatory. In 1983 he started his career as an amateur astronomer at the Starkenburg Observatory, where this minor planet was discovered. The name was suggested by codiscoverer E. Schwab.Naming citation (20100923/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Kaufer is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Kaufer is 2.24 au from the Sun and 1.95 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 216624 |
| Provisional designation | 2002 XW37 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 15.86 |
| Orbital period | 4.00 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.52 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.24 – 2.79 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.109 |
| Inclination | 8.39° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.27 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Andreas
- (8164) Andreasdoppler
- (10210) Nathues
- (12496) Ekholm
- (12618) Cellarius
- (17368) Korn
- (26429) Andiwagner
- (58098) Quirrenbach
- (112233) Kammerer
- (140602) Berlind
- (145566) Andreasphilipp
- (263391) Gruntzig
- (267003) Burkert
All asteroids named after someone called Andreas