Carl William Hergenrother (born 1973) is an American
astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. Astronomers observe astronomical objects, such as stars, planets, natural satellite, moons, comets and galaxy, galax ...
and discoverer of
minor planet
According to the International Astronomical Union (IAU), a minor planet is an astronomical object in direct orbit around the Sun that is exclusively classified as neither a planet nor a comet. Before 2006, the IAU officially used the term ''minor ...
s and
comet
A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that warms and begins to release gases when passing close to the Sun, a process called outgassing. This produces an extended, gravitationally unbound atmosphere or Coma (cometary), coma surrounding ...
s.
Hergenrother has 2 children,
8109 Danielwilliam, and
8711 Lukeasher, are named after his children.
7959 Alysecherri, is named after his wife, Alyse.
As credited by the
Minor Planet Center
The Minor Planet Center (MPC) is the official body for observing and reporting on minor planets under the auspices of the International Astronomical Union (IAU). Founded in 1947, it operates at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory.
Funct ...
, he has discovered and co-discovered 32 numbered
asteroid
An asteroid is a minor planet—an object larger than a meteoroid that is neither a planet nor an identified comet—that orbits within the Solar System#Inner Solar System, inner Solar System or is co-orbital with Jupiter (Trojan asteroids). As ...
s at the
Bigelow Sky Survey during 1993–1999.
He has also discovered a number of comets including the long-period comet, C/1996 R1 (Hergenrother-Spahr), and three periodic comets,
168P/Hergenrother, 175P/Hergenrother and P/1999 V1 (Catalina). He was also a member of the science and operations team of the 2016-launched
OSIRIS-REx
OSIRIS-REx was a NASA asteroid-study and sample-return mission that visited and collected samples from 101955 Bennu, a C-type asteroid, carbonaceous near-Earth object, near-Earth asteroid. The material, returned in September 2023, is expected ...
spacecraft, a sample return mission to study near-Earth asteroid
101955 Bennu
101955 Bennu ( provisional designation ) is a carbonaceous asteroid in the Apollo group discovered by the LINEAR Project on 11 September 1999. It is a potentially hazardous object that is listed on the Sentry Risk Table and has the second hig ...
.
The outer main-belt asteroid
3099 Hergenrother was named in his honor on 3 May 1996 ().
List of discovered minor planets
See also
*
References
External links
Beyond Pluto: exploring the outer limits of the solar system John Keith Davies, Cambridge University Press
Get to Know a Staff Scientist: Carl Hergenrother Lunar & Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hergenrother, Carl W.
1973 births
Discoverers of asteroids
Discoverers of comets
*
Living people
American planetary scientists