(1979) Sakharov Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 24 September 1960 by van Houten, C. J., van Houten-Groeneveld, I., Gehrels, T. at Palomar.
Named in honor of Academician Andrej Dmitrievich Sakharov, distinguished physicist and mathematician -- and a courageous individual.Naming citation (MPC 6207), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Sakharov is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Sakharov is 2.17 au from the Sun and 1.21 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 1979 |
| Provisional designation | 2006 P-L |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 4.76 km (#11,092 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.394 |
| Rotation period | 7.52 hours |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 13.66 |
| Orbital period | 3.66 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.37 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.14 – 2.61 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.0999 |
| Inclination | 6.05° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.15 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also discovered on 24 September 1960
- (1743) Schmidt
- (1744) Harriet
- (1776) Kuiper
- (1777) Gehrels
- (1795) Woltjer
- (1808) Bellerophon
- (1809) Prometheus
- (1810) Epimetheus
- (1811) Bruwer
- (1812) Gilgamesh
- (1846) Bengt
- (1868) Thersites