(32809) Sommerfeld Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 10 October 1990 by Borngen, F., Schmadel, L. D. at Tautenburg.
Arnold Sommerfeld (1868-1951), a longtime professor in Munich, taught many renowned physicists. He extended the atomic model of Bohr, wave mechanics and the theory of electrons in metals. His textbook Atomic Structure and Spectral Lines (1919-1929) was a standard for decades.Naming citation (20020427/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Sommerfeld is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Sommerfeld is 2.76 au from the Sun and 1.83 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 32809 |
| Provisional designation | 1990 TJ10 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 3.71 km (#13,431 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.203 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 14.43 |
| Orbital period | 5.18 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.99 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.72 – 3.26 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.0905 |
| Inclination | 8.42° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.71 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Arnold
All asteroids named after someone called Arnold
Also discovered on 10 October 1990
- (5236) Yoko
- (6068) Brandenburg
- (6717) Antal
- (8500) Hori
- (11886) Kraske
- (15727) Ianmorison
- (17460) Mang
- (18360) Sachs
- (19159) Taenakano
- (19162) Wambsganss
- (19992) Schonbein
- (19993) Gunterseeber