(21618) Sheikh Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 13 May 1999 by LINEAR at Socorro.
Hamza Sheikh (b. 1990) was awarded second place in the 2006 Intel International Science and Engineering Fair for his chemistry project. He attends the Head Start School, Islamabad, Punjab, Pakistan.Naming citation (20060711/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Sheikh is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Sheikh is 2.60 au from the Sun and 3.09 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 21618 |
| Provisional designation | 1999 JT122 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 1.90 km (#17,149 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.192 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 15.67 |
| Orbital period | 3.18 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.16 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 1.73 – 2.60 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.201 |
| Inclination | 2.62° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 0.713 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Hamza
All asteroids named after someone called Hamza
Also discovered on 13 May 1999
- (11417) Chughtai
- (11418) Williamwang
- (11743) Jachowski
- (17130) Alexzhang
- (17147) Mariafields
- (17149) Victoriagraf
- (17151) Zanderhill
- (18012) Marsland
- (18013) Shedletsky
- (18015) Semenkovich
- (18016) Grondahl
- (18019) Dascoli