(27879) Shibata Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 15 February 1996 by T. Okuni at Nanyo.
Shinpei Shibata (b. 1954) is a Japanese astrophysicist who works on the theory of particle acceleration and high-energy emission in the pulsar magnetosphere. He also contributes greatly to education and to popularizing astronomy in Yamagata prefecture.Naming citation (20030614/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Shibata is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Shibata is 2.52 au from the Sun and 1.67 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 27879 |
| Provisional designation | 1996 CZ2 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 3.31 km (#14,443 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.336 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 14.68 |
| Orbital period | 3.54 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.32 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.12 – 2.53 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.0878 |
| Inclination | 5.74° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.11 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.