Central main belt objects

Minor planets located in the middle region of the main belt.

Close-up photo of a pink lotus flower in bloom.
Aries discovery, Asteroids, Central main belt objects, Focus On, Karma family, Main belt objects

Focus On: (3811) Karma

Named for the ancient Indian philosophical principle of cause and effect: good actions and intent have good consequences; bad actions and intent have bad consequences. This can also refer to how a person’s actions affect who they become. (Note that the various theories of karma are generally much more complex than in popular media descriptions.)

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Detail of a panorama of Mandeville, Jamaica, looking north. Photo by Op. Deo.
Asteroids, Central main belt objects, Focus On, Main belt objects, Virgo discovery

Focus On: (739) Mandeville

Mandeville is the capital and largest town in the parish of Manchester in Middlesex, Jamaica. It was laid out in 1816, and named after Viscount Mandeville, the eldest son of the Duke of Manchester, who was then governor of Jamaica.

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Othello and Desdemona (c. 1780), from William Blake's Illustrations to Shakespeare. A typical Blake painting in sepia, browns and greys. Othello (left), a young Black man dressed in armour and a cloak with uncovered head, holds Desdemona's hand and one arm surrounds her waist. He gazes at her with a loving expression. Desdemona's other hand rests across her chest, and she returns his gaze with some demureness. She is a young white woman in a simple, pale dress with a loose headdress partially covering golden hair.
Aquarius discovery, Asteroids, Central main belt objects, Focus On, Main belt objects

Focus On: (666) Desdemona

Name origin: Desdemona, character in Shakespeare’s Othello. The name may have been inspired by the asteroid’s provisional designation, containing the letters “DM”. Desdemona is the faithful wife of Othello whose reputation is muddied by the villain Iago.

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Detail of a mediaeval manuscript page featuring Prudencia (crowned), at top riding a wagon and then a horse to the celestial Empyrean; at bottom, addressing young women.
Asteroids, Central main belt objects, Focus On, Main belt objects, Virgo discovery

Focus On: (474) Prudentia

Name origin: Roman personification of prudence. Prudentia, whose attributes are a mirror and a snake, is frequently depicted as a pair with Justitia, the Roman goddess of Justice. The word “prudence” derives from the Latin prudentia meaning “foresight, sagacity”.

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Digitally enhanced bas-relief marble sculpture of Aeolus blowing wind.
Aeolia family, Asteroids, Central main belt objects, Focus On, Gemini discovery, Main belt objects

Focus On: (396) Aeolia

Aiolos was the divine keeper of the winds and king of the mythical, floating island of Aiolia (Aeolia). He kept the violent Storm-Winds locked safely away inside the cavernous interior of his isle, releasing them only at the command of greatest gods to wreak devastation upon the world.

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Ruins of Aeclanum, a Roman town in Irpinia district, now Avellino, Campania. The ruin stands in a green park with trees in the background. A diamond patterning is visible on most of the walls, alongside thinly layered horizontal reddish bricks.
Aries discovery, Asteroids, Central main belt objects, Focus On, Main belt objects

Focus On: (377) Campania

Name origin: Campania, a region of south-west Italy. Occupied by several Italic tribes since the beginning of the 1st millennium BCE. The Etruscans and Greeks established colonies in the Campanian Plains and in Naples respectively, before it became part of the Roman republic by the end of the 4th century BCE.

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