Discovered by D. di Cicco MPC designation 11132 Observation arc 8098 days (22.17 yr) Inclination 4.203941° Orbits Sun Discovery site Sudbury observatory | Discovery date 17 November 1996 Alternative names 1996 WU Discovered 17 November 1996 Argument of perihelion 296.73641° Discoverer Dennis di Cicco Asteroid group Asteroid belt | |
Aphelion 3.4965671 AU (523.07899 Gm) | ||
11132 Horne (1996 WU) is a main-belt asteroid discovered on November 17, 1996, by D. di Cicco at Sudbury, Massachusetts.
Minor planet 11132 was named Asteroid Horne in honor of Johnny Horne, photo editor for the Fayetteville Observer, a 75,000 circulation daily newspaper in southeastern North Carolina where Horne has worked for three decades. The International Astronomical Union (IAU) recognized Horne with the naming in January 2004 for his work with public outreach in astronomy.
Horne has been an amateur astronomer since age 10. Since 1989, he has written a monthly astronomy column, Backyard Universe, for The Observer. Horne is also a contributing editor for Sky and Telescope magazine and has served as a study leader for S&T astronomical expeditions to Mexico, Africa, the Caribbean and Iceland.
He photographed Halley's Comet from the Australian Outback in 1986 and his astronomical photographs have appeared in magazines and newspapers worldwide. He regularly reviews amateur astronomy products for Sky and Telescope¹s test reports.
During 2002, Horne produced a collection of his astronomical photographs over 25 years. That Backyard Universe Gallery collection was displayed at the Morehead Planetarium and Science Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, 40 years after a class visit there had triggered Horne's lifelong interest in astronomy.