(7973) Koppeschaar Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 29 September 1973 by van Houten, C. J., van Houten-Groeneveld, I., Gehrels, T. at Palomar.
Carl Egon Koppeschaar is a science writer and reporter in the Netherlands. He is internationally known for popularizing astrophysics and space science, for debunking pseudoscience, and for taking action against light pollution. His Moon Handbook: a 21st-Century Travel Guide is a delight.Naming citation (20000124/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Koppeschaar is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Koppeschaar is 2.98 au from the Sun and 2.43 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 7973 |
| Provisional designation | 1344 T-2 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 3.57 km (#13,773 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.205 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 14.22 |
| Orbital period | 4.87 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.87 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.63 – 3.11 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.0827 |
| Inclination | 2.33° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.65 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Carl
- (2044) Wirt
- (3360) Syrinx
- (5493) Spitzweg
- (6058) Carlnielsen
- (6175) Cori
- (7414) Bosch
- (7911) Carlpilcher
- (8058) Zuckmayer
- (8268) Goerdeler
- (8677) Charlier
- (9180) Samsagan
- (9248) Sauer
All asteroids named after someone called Carl
Also discovered on 29 September 1973
- (2049) Grietje
- (4357) Korinthos
- (4549) Burkhardt
- (4721) Atahualpa
- (4752) Myron
- (4876) Strabo
- (4978) Seitz
- (5151) Weerstra
- (5197) Rottmann
- (5243) Clasien
- (5244) Amphilochos
- (5266) Rauch