(377108) Spoelie Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 23 November 2002 by NEAT at Palomar.
‘Spoelie’ is the nickname of Mark Spoelstra (b. 1962), a Dutch planetarium technician. From its start in 1988 until 2025, Mark worked at the Artis Planetarium in Amsterdam, the largest projection planetarium in the Netherlands. In the early 1990s, he co-developed the DigiDome software that later became the basis of full-dome video projection.Naming citation (WGSBN Bull. 5, #9, 20), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Spoelie is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Spoelie is 2.83 au from the Sun and 3.63 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 377108 |
| Provisional designation | 2002 WL28 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 3.87 km (#13,056 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.0460 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 16.06 |
| Orbital period | 5.66 years |
| Semi-major axis | 3.18 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.65 – 3.70 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.164 |
| Inclination | 27.3° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.72 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Mark
- (7004) Markthiemens
- (7552) Sephton
- (7778) Markrobinson
- (7917) Hammergren
- (8015) Marksimons
- (8329) Speckman
- (8686) Akenside
- (8789) Effertz
- (10276) Matney
- (10598) Markrees
- (12094) Mazumder
- (13211) Stucky
All asteroids named after someone called Mark