(5585) Parks Mars-crossing Asteroid
Discovered on 28 June 1990 by E. F. Helin at Palomar.
Named in honor of Robert J. Parks, a leader in the exploration of the solar system. Early in his career at the Caltech Jet Propulsion Laboratory, he developed radio control and telemetry for the first guided missiles. As these techniques matured to become the basis for the control of and communication with interplanetary spacecraft, Parks was assigned overall responsibility for the first missions to Mercury, Venus and Mars, as well as for the first U.S. lunar lander, Surveyor, and the Voyager missions to Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. His final position at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory was deputy director, but throughout all his assignments his task was the same: to make sure the flight missions worked. Because of his expertise and dedication, they did.Naming citation (WGSBN Bull. 3, #14, 4), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Parks is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Parks is 1.86 au from the Sun and 1.09 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 5585 |
| Provisional designation | 1990 MJ |
| Orbit class | Mars-crossing Asteroid |
| Rotation period | 10.3 hours |
| Spectral type | Ch |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 14.23 |
| Orbital period | 4.47 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.71 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 1.63 – 3.79 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.399 |
| Inclination | 28.6° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 0.821 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Robert
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