(23712) Willpatrick Main-belt Asteroid
Discovered on 1 January 1998 by Dillon, W. G., Dillon, E. R. at Needville.
William Patrick Dillon (b. 1992), son of the discoverers, was with them on the discovery night: “Daddy, I want to go home now. This place is cold and spooky.” “Just one more image, son. Keep your eyes on the heavens!”Naming citation (20040928/MPCPages.arc), IAU / Minor Planet Center, via NASA/JPL
Where Willpatrick is today
Seen from above the solar system on 2026-10-14: Willpatrick is 1.93 au from the Sun and 1.02 au from Earth. Computed from JPL's orbital elements.
Facts
| Number | 23712 |
| Provisional designation | 1998 AA |
| Orbit class | Main-belt Asteroid |
| Diameter | 7.66 km (#6,929 largest of 17,440 named asteroids with a measured size) |
| Albedo | 0.120 |
| Rotation period | 3.90 hours |
| Absolute magnitude (H) | 13.77 |
| Orbital period | 3.66 years |
| Semi-major axis | 2.37 au |
| Perihelion – aphelion | 1.79 – 2.96 au |
| Eccentricity | 0.246 |
| Inclination | 23.5° |
| Closest distance between its orbit and Earth's (MOID) | 0.939 au |
Data: NASA/JPL Small-Body Database and the IAU Minor Planet Center.
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