9913 Humperdinck is a main belt asteroid. It orbit

Orbit

In physics, an orbit is the gravitationally curved path of an object around a point in space, for example the orbit of a planet around the center of a star system, such as the Solar System...

s the Sun

Sun

The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...

 once every 3.46 years. It is associated with the Flora family

Flora family

The Flora family of asteroids is a large grouping of S-type asteroids in the inner main belt, whose origin and properties are relatively poorly understood at present...

 of asteroids.

Discovered on October 16, 1977 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...

 and 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...

 on archived photographic plate

Photographic plate

Photographic plates preceded photographic film as a means of photography. A light-sensitive emulsion of silver salts was applied to a glass plate. This form of photographic material largely faded from the consumer market in the early years of the 20th century, as more convenient and less fragile...

s made by Tom Gehrels

Tom Gehrels

Tom Gehrels , was an American astronomer, Professor Planetary Sciences, and Astronomer at the University of Arizona, Tucson....

 with the Samuel Oschin telescope

Samuel Oschin telescope

The Samuel Oschin telescope is a 48-inch aperture Schmidt camera at the Palomar Observatory in northern San Diego County, California. It consists of a 49.75-inch Schmidt corrector plate and a 72-inch mirror. The instrument is strictly a camera; there is no provision for an eyepiece to look...

 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 was given the provisional designation "4071 T-3". It was later renamed "Humperdinck" after musical teacher Engelbert Humperdinck

Engelbert Humperdinck

Engelbert Humperdinck was a German composer, best known for his opera, Hänsel und Gretel. Humperdinck was born at Siegburg in the Rhine Province; at the age of 67 he died in Neustrelitz, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.-Life:After receiving piano lessons, Humperdinck produced his first composition...

.