(21956) Thangada Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 6 November 1999 by LINEAR at Socorro.
Neela Devi Thangada (b. 1990) is a finalist in the 2005 Discovery Channel Young Scientist Challenge (DCYSC), a middle school science competition, for her botany & zoology project. She attends the Keystone Junior High School, San Antonio, Texas.Naming citation (20051019/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Thangada is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Thangada is 3.05 au from the Sun and 2.19 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 21956 |
| Provisional designation | 1999 VE179 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 4.23 km (#12,191 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.188 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 14.28 |
| Orbital period | 4.62 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.77 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.49 – 3.05 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.101 |
| Inclination | 9.90° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.50 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.