(48458) Merian Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 13 September 1991 by Borngen, F., Schmadel, L. D. at Tautenburg.
Swiss engraver, etcher and book dealer Matthäus Merian (1593-1650) and his sons published more than 2000 detailed town views and city maps in the Topographia Germaniae at Frankfurt-am-Main beginning in 1642. These maps are of paramount importance in the area's cultural history.Naming citation (20030318/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Merian is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Merian is 3.21 au from the Sun and 4.06 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 48458 |
| Provisional designation | 1991 RG5 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 10.2 km (#4,960 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.0670 |
| Rotation period | 12.7 hours |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 13.79 |
| Orbital period | 5.51 years |
| Semi-major axis | 3.12 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.66 – 3.57 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.146 |
| Inclination | 11.8° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.69 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also discovered on 13 September 1991
- (5338) Michelblanc
- (5628) Preussen
- (6044) Hammer-Purgstall
- (6966) Vietoris
- (7586) Bismarck
- (7767) Tomatic
- (7945) Kreisau
- (9761) Krautter
- (9762) Hermannhesse
- (9863) Reichardt
- (10096) Colleenohare
- (12729) Berger