(12173) Lansbergen Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 16 October 1977 by van Houten, C. J., van Houten-Groeneveld, I., Gehrels, T. at Palomar.
Philippus Lansbergen (1561-1632), Calvanist minister and active astronomical researcher in Middelburg, The Netherlands, in 1629 wrote the first popular book on astronomy in the Dutch language. The book promoted the Copernican system and became a best seller.Naming citation (20090209/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Lansbergen is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Lansbergen is 2.85 au from the Sun and 2.65 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 12173 |
| Provisional designation | 3135 T-3 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 4.20 km (#12,273 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.332 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 14.11 |
| Orbital period | 4.54 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.74 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.58 – 2.90 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.0575 |
| Inclination | 3.43° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.60 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also discovered on 16 October 1977
- (3798) de Jager
- (3936) Elst
- (4044) Erikhog
- (4108) Rakos
- (4722) Agelaos
- (4753) Phidias
- (4754) Panthoos
- (5610) Balster
- (5699) Munch
- (5700) Homerus
- (5984) Lysippus
- (6055) Brunelleschi