(16796) Shinji Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 6 February 1997 by N. Sato at Chichibu.
Shinji Tsuruta (1957-2008) was a Japanese aerospace engineer who contributed to the success of the mission ‘KAGUYA’ as a leader of design and development of the batteries that supplied electrical energy to all the on-board components of the KAGUYA, OKINA and OUNA spacecraft.Naming citation (20101128/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Shinji is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Shinji is 3.57 au from the Sun and 4.40 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 16796 |
| Provisional designation | 1997 CY16 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Rotation period | 103 hours |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 13.43 |
| Orbital period | 5.65 years |
| Semi-major axis | 3.17 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.76 – 3.59 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.130 |
| Inclination | 10.4° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.80 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.