(5542) Moffatt Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 6 August 1978 by Perth Observatory at Bickley.
Ethelwin Frances Flamsteed Moffatt (née Winzar, b. 1926) is a direct descendant of John Flamsteed, the first Astronomer Royal. Born in Fremantle, Western Australia, she now resides in Adelaide, where she and her husband, Mervyn Moffatt, are kind benefactors of the Perth Observatory.Naming citation (20010902/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Moffatt is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Moffatt is 2.95 au from the Sun and 3.86 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 5542 |
| Provisional designation | 1978 PT4 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 8.60 km (#6,071 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.345 |
| Rotation period | 5.19 hours |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 12.61 |
| Orbital period | 4.16 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.59 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.18 – 3.00 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.160 |
| Inclination | 15.9° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.24 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
More named asteroids discovered by Perth Observatory
- (1806) Derice
- (1978) Patrice
- (2167) Erin
- (2382) Nonie
- (2993) Wendy
- (2994) Flynn
- (3188) Jekabsons
- (3301) Jansje
- (3422) Reid
- (3541) Graham
- (3731) Hancock
- (3764) Holmesacourt
← (5541) Seimei · (5543) Sharaf →