(34978) van 't Hoff Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 17 October 1977 by van Houten, C. J., van Houten-Groeneveld, I., Gehrels, T. at Palomar.
The Dutch physical chemist Jacobus Henricus van 't Hoff (1852–1911) was awarded the first Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1901. The award was for his work showing that the laws describing the behavior of very dilute solutions resemble the laws describing the behavior of gases.Naming citation (WGSBN Bull. 1, #2, 8), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where van 't Hoff is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: van 't Hoff is 3.22 au from the Sun and 3.69 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 34978 |
| Provisional designation | 1901 T-3 |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 10.3 km (#4,918 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.0600 |
| Rotation period | 14.5 hours |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 13.71 |
| Orbital period | 5.66 years |
| Semi-major axis | 3.18 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 3.09 – 3.26 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.0265 |
| Inclination | 8.22° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 2.11 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
Also discovered on 17 October 1977
- (4043) Perolof
- (6147) Straub
- (7447) Marcusaurelius
- (7854) Laotse
- (8440) Wigeon
- (9825) Oetken
- (10981) Fransaris
- (11773) Schouten
- (11774) Jerne
- (12648) Ibarbourou
- (55701) Ukalegon
- (55702) Thymoitos