(6737) Okabayashi Main-belt Asteroid

Discovered on 15 March 1993 by Endate, K., Watanabe, K. at Kitami.

Named in memory of Shigeki Okabayashi (1913-1944), a self-taught Japanese astronomer. The first in Japan to discover more than one kind of new celestial object, he discovered Nova V630 Sgr in 1936 and comet C/1940 S1 (Okabayashi-Honda), and also independently discovered C/1939 H1 and C/1939 V1. He was employed by Kurashiki Observatory from 1939 to 1941. Tragically, he was killed on his way home from a geological survey in Sumatra when his hospital ship was torpedoed. Name proposed by the discoverers following a suggestion by T. Sato and A. Fujii.Naming citation (19980411/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL

Where Okabayashi is today

Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Okabayashi is 2.59 au from the Sun and 2.17 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.

Facts

Number	6737
Provisional designation	1993 ER
Orbit class	Main-belt Asteroid
Diameter	4.63 km (#11,370 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size)
Albedo	0.395
Rotation period	2.55 hours
Absolute magnitude (H)	13.87
Orbital period	3.55 years
Semi-major axis	2.33 au
Perihelion – aphelion	2.04 – 2.62 au
Eccentricity	0.125
Inclination	0.808°
Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID)	1.05 au

Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.

Also named after someone called Shigeki

(24981) Shigekimurakami

All asteroids named after someone called Shigeki

Also discovered on 15 March 1993

More named asteroids discovered by Endate, K., Watanabe, K.

All 535

← (6736) Marchare · (6738) Tanabe →