Q155454
Also known as (551) Ortrud, Ortrud, (551) 1904 PM
main-belt asteroid
Picture of the Day · NASA
Jupiter and Venus from Earth
2026-06-07
It was visible around the world. The sunset conjunction of Jupiter (left) and Venus (right) in 2012 was visible almost no matter where you lived on Earth. Anyone on our planet with a clear western horizon at sunset could see them. That year, a creative photographer traveled away from the town lights of Szubin, Poland to photograph a near closest approach of the two planets. The bright planets were then separated by only three degrees and his daughter struck a humorous pose. A faint red sunset still glowed in the background. Jupiter and Venus are together again this week after sunset, passing within a degree of each other about two days from today.
© Marek Nikodem (PPSAE) · via NASA APOD
Key facts
- Discovered by
- Max Wolf
- Discovery site
- Heidelberg
- Discovery date
- 16 November 1904
- Pronunciation
- German: [ ˈɔʁtʁʊt ]
- Alternative designations
- 1904 PM
- Observation arc
- 111.06 yr (40565 d)
~1 min read
Article
551 Ortrud is a minor planet orbiting the Sun. It is located in the Main Belt. In light of the practice of the discover c. 1904 to name his asteroids after female characters in opera, it is likely that Ortrud is named after a character in Richard Wagner's opera Lohengrin.
References