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...

s discovered: 24

17 Thetis 17 Thetis 17 Thetis is a large main-belt asteroid. It is an S-type asteroid, therefore giving it a relatively bright silicate surface.It was discovered by R. Luther on April 17, 1852. It was his first asteroid discovery. Its name comes from Thetis, the mother of Achilles in Greek mythology.One Thetidian...	April 17, 1852
26 Proserpina 26 Proserpina 26 Proserpina is a main-belt asteroid.It was discovered by R. Luther on May 5, 1853.It is named after the Roman goddess Proserpina, the daughter of Ceres and the Queen of the Underworld.-References:...	May 5, 1853
28 Bellona 28 Bellona 28 Bellona is a large main-belt asteroid.Bellona was discovered by R. Luther on March 1, 1854. It is named after Bellona, the Roman goddess of war; the name was chosen to mark the beginning of the Crimean War.-External links:...	March 1, 1854
35 Leukothea 35 Leukothea 35 Leukothea is a large, dark main-belt asteroid.It was discovered by R. Luther on April 19, 1855, and named after Leukothea, a sea goddess in Greek mythology.-References:...	April 19, 1855
37 Fides 37 Fides 37 Fides is a large main-belt asteroid.It was discovered by R. Luther on October 5, 1855, and named after Fides, the Roman goddess of loyalty.-References:...	October 5, 1855
47 Aglaja 47 Aglaja 47 Aglaja is a large, dark main belt asteroid. It was discovered by Robert Luther on September 15, 1857 from Düsseldorf. The name was chosen by the Philosophical Faculty of the University of Bonn and refers to Aglaea, one of the Charites in Greek mythology....	September 15, 1857
53 Kalypso 53 Kalypso 53 Kalypso is a large and very dark main belt asteroid. It was discovered by Robert Luther on April 4, 1858 at Düsseldorf. It is named after Calypso, a sea nymph in Greek mythology, a name it shares with Calypso, a moon of Saturn.- References :...	April 4, 1858
57 Mnemosyne 57 Mnemosyne 57 Mnemosyne is a large main belt asteroid. It is an S-type asteroid in composition. It was discovered by Robert Luther on September 22, 1859 from Düsseldorf. Its name was chosen by Martin Hoek, director of the Utrecht Observatory, in reference to Mnemosyne, a Titaness in Greek...	September 22, 1859
58 Concordia 58 Concordia 58 Concordia is a fairly large asteroid-belt asteroid. It is classified as a C-type asteroid, meaning that its surface is very dark and it is likely carbonaceous in composition.Concordia was discovered by Robert Luther on March 24, 1860...	March 24, 1860
68 Leto 68 Leto 68 Leto is a large main belt asteroid. Its spectral type is S. It was discovered by Robert Luther on April 29, 1861. The asteroid is named after Leto, the mother of Apollo and Artemis in Greek mythology.-External links:* from JPL *...	April 29, 1861
71 Niobe 71 Niobe 71 Niobe is a quite large main-belt asteroid. It was discovered by Robert Luther on August 13, 1861, and named after Niobe, a character in Greek mythology.-References:...	August 13, 1861
78 Diana 78 Diana 78 Diana is a large and dark main-belt asteroid. Its composition is carbonaceous and primitive. It was discovered by Robert Luther on March 15, 1863, and named after Diana, Roman goddess of the hunt. 78 Diana occulted a star on September 4, 1980. A diameter of 116 km was measured, closely...	March 15, 1863
82 Alkmene 82 Alkmene 82 Alkmene is a main-belt asteroid. Alkmene was discovered by R. Luther on November 27, 1864, and named after Alcmene, the mother of Herakles in Greek mythology. A satellite has been suggested based on the lightcurve data. -References:...	November 27, 1864
84 Klio 84 Klio 84 Klio is a quite large and very dark main-belt asteroid. It was discovered by R. Luther on August 25, 1865, and named after Clio, the Muse of history in Greek mythology. The name Clio had previously been suggested by the discoverer of 12 Victoria, and that is the name B. A...	August 25, 1865
90 Antiope 90 Antiope The most remarkable feature of Antiope is that it consists of two components of almost equal size , making it a truly "double" asteroid. Its binary nature was discovered on 10 August 2000 by a group of astronomers using adaptive optics at the Keck Telescope on Mauna Kea. The "secondary" is...	October 1, 1866
95 Arethusa 95 Arethusa 95 Arethusa is a large main-belt asteroid. Its coloring is dark, its composition carbonaceous and primitive. It was discovered by Robert Luther on November 23, 1867, and named after one of the various Arethusas in Greek mythology...	November 23, 1867
108 Hecuba 108 Hecuba 108 Hecuba is a fairly large and bright main-belt asteroid.Hecuba orbits within the Hygiea family of asteroids but is not otherwise related to other family members because it has a silicate composition; Hygieas are dark C-type asteroids....	April 2, 1869
113 Amalthea 113 Amalthea 113 Amalthea is a fairly typical rocky main-belt asteroid orbiting in the inner regions of the belt. It was discovered by R. Luther on March 12, 1871....	March 12, 1871
118 Peitho 118 Peitho 118 Peitho is a main-belt asteroid. It is probably an S-type asteroid. It was discovered by R. Luther on March 15, 1872, and named after one of the two Peithos in Greek mythology. There have been two observed Peithoan occultations of a dim star: one was in 2000 and the other in 2003.-References:...	March 15, 1872
134 Sophrosyne 134 Sophrosyne 134 Sophrosyne is a large main-belt asteroid. It has an exceedingly dark surface and most probably a primitive carbonaceous composition. It was discovered by Robert Luther on September 27, 1873, and is named after the concept of sophrosyne, Plato's term for 'moderation'....	September 27, 1873
241 Germania 241 Germania 241 Germania is a very large main-belt asteroid. It is classified as a C-type asteroid and is probably composed of dark, privitive carbonaceous material.It was discovered by Robert Luther on September 12, 1884 in Düsseldorf....	September 12, 1884
247 Eukrate 247 Eukrate 247 Eukrate is a rather large main-belt asteroid. It is dark and probably a primitive carbonaceus body.It was discovered by Robert Luther on March 14, 1885, in Düsseldorf.It was named after Eukrate, a Nereid in Greek mythology.- References :...	March 14, 1885
258 Tyche 258 Tyche 258 Tyche is a relatively large main belt asteroid discovered in 1886. It is classified as an S-type. Tyche orbits very close to the Eunomia family of asteroids, and could be a member based on composition. However, it is larger than all family members apart from 15 Eunomia while lying at the very...	May 4, 1886
288 Glauke 288 Glauke 288 Glauke is an asteroid from the asteroid belt discovered by Robert Luther in 1890. It was the last of his asteroid discoveries. It is named after Glauke, a daughter of Creon a king of Corinth in Greek mythology....	February 20, 1890

Karl Theodor Robert Luther (April 16, 1822 – February 15, 1900), normally published as Robert Luther, was a German

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 astronomer

Astronomer

An astronomer is a scientist who studies celestial bodies such as planets, stars and galaxies.Historically, astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky, while astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena and the differences between them using...

 who searched for 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...

s while working in Düsseldorf

Düsseldorf

Düsseldorf is the capital city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and centre of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region.Düsseldorf is an important international business and financial centre and renowned for its fashion and trade fairs. Located centrally within the European Megalopolis, the...

.

Two of his discoveries are now known to have unusual properties: the binary asteroid

Binary asteroid

A binary asteroid is a system of two asteroids orbiting their common center of mass, in analogy with binary stars. 243 Ida was the first binary asteroid to be identified when the Galileo spacecraft did a flyby in 1993...

 with equal components 90 Antiope

90 Antiope

The most remarkable feature of Antiope is that it consists of two components of almost equal size , making it a truly "double" asteroid. Its binary nature was discovered on 10 August 2000 by a group of astronomers using adaptive optics at the Keck Telescope on Mauna Kea. The "secondary" is...

 and the extremely slow-rotating 288 Glauke

288 Glauke

288 Glauke is an asteroid from the asteroid belt discovered by Robert Luther in 1890. It was the last of his asteroid discoveries. It is named after Glauke, a daughter of Creon a king of Corinth in Greek mythology....

. The asteroid 1303 Luthera

1303 Luthera

1303 Luthera is an outer main-belt asteroid discovered on March 16, 1928 by Friedrich Karl Arnold Schwassmann at Hamburg-Bergedorf Observatory.- External links :*...

 and the crater Luther

Luther (crater)

Luther is a small lunar impact crater on the northwest part of Mare Serenitatis, at the inlet to Lacus Somniorum. To the east-southeast is the large crater Posidonius. Luther has a circular rim and is cup-shaped, with no appreciable wear from impact erosion...

 on the Moon

Moon

The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...

were named in his honour.