(19612) Noordung Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 17 July 1999 by Crni Vrh at Crni Vrh.
At the end of 1928 Herman Potočnik (1892-1929) published under the pseudonym Hermann Noordung a visionary work entitled Das Problem der Befahrung des Weltraums---der Raketen-motor. In this work he was the first to detail a technical description of a space station in a geostationary orbit and its applications.Naming citation (20070402/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Noordung is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Noordung is 2.63 au from the Sun and 2.37 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 19612 |
| Provisional designation | 1999 OO |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 3.71 km (#13,424 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.352 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 14.05 |
| Orbital period | 3.68 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.39 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.10 – 2.67 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.120 |
| Inclination | 5.89° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.08 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Herman
All asteroids named after someone called Herman