1604 Tombaugh
Encyclopedia
1604 Tombaugh is an asteroid
discovered by Carl Otto Lampland
on March 24, 1931 at the Lowell Observatory
in Flagstaff, Arizona
. It was named after Clyde W. Tombaugh
, who discovered the dwarf planet
Pluto
(which was considered as a planet
in that time) in 1930. The asteroid's original designation was 1931 FH.
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 by Carl Otto Lampland
Carl Otto Lampland
Carl Otto Lampland was an American astronomer.Carl Otto Lampland was born near Hayfield in Dodge County, Minnesota. He was born into a family of ten children...
on March 24, 1931 at the Lowell Observatory
Lowell Observatory
Lowell Observatory is an astronomical observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona. Lowell Observatory was established in 1894, placing it among the oldest observatories in the United States, and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1965....
in Flagstaff, Arizona
Flagstaff, Arizona
Flagstaff is a city located in northern Arizona, in the southwestern United States. In 2010, the city's population was 65,870. The population of the Metropolitan Statistical Area was at 134,421 in 2010. It is the county seat of Coconino County...
. It was named after Clyde W. Tombaugh
Clyde Tombaugh
Clyde William Tombaugh was an American astronomer. Although he is best known for discovering the dwarf planet Pluto in 1930, the first object to be discovered in what would later be identified as the Kuiper Belt, Tombaugh also discovered many asteroids; he also called for serious scientific...
, who discovered the dwarf planet
Dwarf planet
A dwarf planet, as defined by the International Astronomical Union , is a celestial body orbiting the Sun that is massive enough to be spherical as a result of its own gravity but has not cleared its neighboring region of planetesimals and is not a satellite...
Pluto
Pluto
Pluto, formal designation 134340 Pluto, is the second-most-massive known dwarf planet in the Solar System and the tenth-most-massive body observed directly orbiting the Sun...
(which was considered as a planet
Planet
A planet is a celestial body orbiting a star or stellar remnant that is massive enough to be rounded by its own gravity, is not massive enough to cause thermonuclear fusion, and has cleared its neighbouring region of planetesimals.The term planet is ancient, with ties to history, science,...
in that time) in 1930. The asteroid's original designation was 1931 FH.