(23700) Mariagalan Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 25 July 1997 by Pacheco, R., Lopez, A. at Costitx.
María Galán Sánchez (b. 1997) is a dedicated Spanish humanitarian and co-founder of the NGO Babies Uganda. For years, she has transformed the lives of hundreds of orphaned and vulnerable children in Africa through education and healthcare. This naming honors her exemplary altruism, projecting human kindness into the cosmos.Naming citation (WGSBN Bull. 6, #10, 9), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Mariagalan is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Mariagalan is 3.58 au from the Sun and 3.69 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 23700 |
| Provisional designation | 1997 OZ |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 5.94 km (#9,036 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.0720 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 14.7 |
| Orbital period | 5.41 years |
| Semi-major axis | 3.08 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.52 – 3.64 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.182 |
| Inclination | 2.71° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.51 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Maria
- (4555) Josefaperez
- (6635) Zuber
- (7026) Gabrielasilang
- (7722) Firneis
- (9013) Sansaturio
- (9815) Mariakirch
- (9822) Hajdukova
- (10924) Mariagriffin
- (11517) Esteracuna
- (12005) Delgiudice
- (12624) Mariacunitia
- (13760) Rodriguez
All asteroids named after someone called Maria