(26661) Kempelen Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 27 November 2000 by P. Kusnirak at Ondrejov.
Wolfgang Kempelen (1734–1804), a polymath, mechanic and inventor, constructed a speech machine in 1778 based on imitating the human vocal organs. His most famous inventions are a chess machine, a writing machine for the blind and a pressurized conduit that took water from the Danube to Bratislava Castle.Naming citation (WGSBN Bull. 3, #13, 9), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Kempelen is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Kempelen is 2.30 au from the Sun and 2.90 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 26661 |
| Provisional designation | 2000 WY67 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 15.84 |
| Orbital period | 3.43 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.28 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.20 – 2.35 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.0328 |
| Inclination | 6.77° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.21 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Wolfgang
- (6659) Pietsch
- (7686) Wolfernst
- (7971) Meckbach
- (9700) Paech
- (13055) Kreppein
- (13093) Wolfgangpauli
- (14994) Uppenkamp
- (17458) Dick
- (17488) Mantl
- (21420) Steinicke
- (29148) Palzer
- (30829) Wolfwacker
All asteroids named after someone called Wolfgang