(4961) Timherder Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 8 October 1958 by Lowell Observatory at Flagstaff.
Timothy Scott Herder (b. 1955) is the deputy project manager of NASA's New Horizons-Pluto Kuiper Belt mission. As such, he has helped further the exploration of the planets.Naming citation (20051215/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Timherder is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Timherder is 3.15 au from the Sun and 3.32 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 4961 |
| Provisional designation | 1958 TH1 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 11.5 km (#4,323 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.212 |
| Rotation period | 4.12 hours |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 12.19 |
| Orbital period | 5.61 years |
| Semi-major axis | 3.16 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 2.46 – 3.85 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.219 |
| Inclination | 7.80° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 1.47 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also named after someone called Timothy
- (4259) McCoy
- (7007) Timjull
- (7915) Halbrook
- (7982) Timmartin
- (8690) Swindle
- (9276) Timgrove
- (9918) Timtrenkle
- (11225) Borden
- (14797) Timrose
- (16124) Timdong
- (18565) Selg
- (21423) Credo
All asteroids named after someone called Timothy
More named asteroids discovered by Lowell Observatory
← (4960) Mayo · (4962) Vecherka →