(7631) Vokrouhlicky Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 20 November 1981 by E. Bowell at Anderson Mesa.
Named in honor of David Vokrouhlický (b. 1966), a Czech physicist at Charles University, Prague, who has developed new physical models for the nongravitational forces acting on small minor planets and meteoroids. In particular, Vokrouhlický has studied the so-called Yarkovsky effect, which causes a slow orbital drift into main-belt resonances and is an important mechanism for transporting meteorites to Earth. Name proposed and citation written by P. Farinella.Naming citation (19990728/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Vokrouhlicky is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Vokrouhlicky is 2.68 au from the Sun and 3.63 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 7631 |
| Provisional designation | 1981 WH |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 3.83 km (#13,142 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.242 |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 14.12 |
| Orbital period | 3.65 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.37 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 1.70 – 3.04 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.283 |
| Inclination | 4.03° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 0.716 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
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