4387 Tanaka
Encyclopedia
4387 Tanaka is a main-belt
asteroid
discovered on September 19, 1973 by Cornelis Johannes van Houten
, Ingrid van Houten-Groeneveld
and Tom Gehrels
at the Palomar Observatory
. It is named for Japanese astrophysicist
Yasuo Tanaka
.
Asteroid belt
The asteroid belt is the region of the Solar System located roughly between the orbits of the planets Mars and Jupiter. It is occupied by numerous irregularly shaped bodies called asteroids or minor planets...
asteroid
Asteroid
Asteroids are a class of small Solar System bodies in orbit around the Sun. They have also been called planetoids, especially the larger ones...
discovered on September 19, 1973 by Cornelis Johannes van Houten
Cornelis Johannes van Houten
Cornelis Johannes van Houten was a Dutch astronomer, sometimes referred to as Kees van Houten.Born in The Hague, he spent his entire career at Leiden University except for a brief period as research assistant at Yerkes Observatory...
, Ingrid van Houten-Groeneveld
Ingrid van Houten-Groeneveld
Ingrid van Houten-Groeneveld is a Dutch astronomer.In a jointly-credited trio with Tom Gehrels and her husband Cornelis Johannes van Houten, she was an extremely prolific discoverer of many thousands of asteroids...
and Tom Gehrels
Tom Gehrels
Tom Gehrels , was an American astronomer, Professor Planetary Sciences, and Astronomer at the University of Arizona, Tucson....
at the Palomar Observatory
Palomar Observatory
Palomar Observatory is a privately owned observatory located in San Diego County, California, southeast of Pasadena's Mount Wilson Observatory, in the Palomar Mountain Range. At approximately elevation, it is owned and operated by the California Institute of Technology...
. It is named for Japanese astrophysicist
Astrophysics
Astrophysics is the branch of astronomy that deals with the physics of the universe, including the physical properties of celestial objects, as well as their interactions and behavior...
Yasuo Tanaka
Yasuo Tanaka (astronomer)
is a Japanese astrophysicist. He is professor emeritus at the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science in Kanagawa, Japan, and was guest scientist at the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics in Garching, Germany....
.