(8024) Robertwhite Inner Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 17 March 1991 by E. F. Helin at Palomar.
Air Force test pilot Robert M. White (1924-2010) was the third pilot to fly the X-15 and made a total of 16 flights. He was the first pilot to fly Mach 4, Mach 5 and Mach 6, and the first to fly a winged vehicle into space. White received Air Force astronaut wings for the flight.Naming citation (20120207/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Robertwhite is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Robertwhite is 1.86 au from the Sun and 2.60 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 8024 |
| Provisional designation | 1991 FN |
| Orbit class | Inner Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 1.69 km (#17,280 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.975 |
| Rotation period | 7.07 hours |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 14.99 |
| Orbital period | 2.76 years |
| Semi-major axis | 1.97 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 1.85 – 2.08 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.0583 |
| Inclination | 20.3° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 0.859 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Robert
- (1955) McMath
- (3514) Hooke
- (3875) Staehle
- (4564) Clayton
- (4809) Robertball
- (5109) Robertmiller
- (5308) Hutchison
- (5477) Holmes
- (5585) Parks
- (5636) Jacobson
- (5739) Robertburns
- (5817) Robertfrazer
All asteroids named after someone called Robert
Also discovered on 17 March 1991
- (5377) Komori
- (5749) Urduja
- (5785) Fulton
- (5968) Trauger
- (5969) Ryuichiro
- (6486) Anitahill
- (6910) Ikeguchi
- (8276) Shigei
- (12284) Pohl
- (17472) Dinah
- (29199) Himeji