(9885) Linux Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 12 October 1994 by Spacewatch at Kitt Peak.
The Linux operating system was created by Linus Torvalds in 1991. The source code for Linux was placed on the Internet. A massive public collaboration resulted in a robust, feature-rich operating system that has been used by several minor-planet surveys for data collection and analysis.Naming citation (20001111/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Linux is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Linux is 2.44 au from the Sun and 1.97 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 9885 |
| Provisional designation | 1994 TM14 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 4.57 km (#11,495 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.280 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 13.66 |
| Orbital period | 3.62 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.36 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.20 – 2.52 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.0670 |
| Inclination | 6.11° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.23 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Linus
All asteroids named after someone called Linus
Also discovered on 12 October 1994
More named asteroids discovered by Spacewatch
- (3801) Thrasymedes
- (4255) Spacewatch
- (4442) Garcia
- (5145) Pholus
- (5626) Melissabrucker
- (5923) Liedeke
- (6050) Miwablock
- (6141) Durda
- (6748) Bratton
- (6837) Bressi
- (7066) Nessus
- (7229) Tonimoore
← (9884) Pribram · (9886) Aoyagi →