William Lieurance's Tech Blog

Aswin Sekhar ((link)) Jun 2026

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Aswin Sekhar ((link)) Jun 2026

The definitive turning point in his life came in November 1998. Encouraged by a local mentor, a 13-year-old Sekhar witnessed the spectacular Leonid meteor storm. The view of thousands of cosmic fireworks lighting up the atmosphere ignited a lifelong fascination with small-body solar system dynamics. Dr. Aswin Sekhar

Dr. Sekhar's pioneering work has earned him a place among the most celebrated names in science. In June 2023, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) named a minor planet (asteroid) after him: . This honour places him in the company of only a handful of Indians who have received this distinction, including Nobel laureates C.V. Raman and Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan, and space pioneer Vikram Sarabhai.

Calculating collision risks to protect Earth from asteroid impacts. aswin sekhar

: Discovered in 2000, this celestial body is approximately 4.5 kilometres in diameter and orbits the Sun between Mars and Jupiter.

Did you know there is a minor planet in our solar system named 33928 Aswinsekhar Dr. Aswin Sekhar The definitive turning point in his life came

: In 2025, he became the first Indian elected to the decision-making bodies of both the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS) and the International Astronomical Union (IAU) Commission on Meteor Science.

"I am," Aswin said, not looking up from the 18th-century telescope he was polishing. "I don't do appraisals. I only do restorations." In June 2023, the International Astronomical Union (IAU)

Dr. Aswin Sekhar is a prominent Indian astrophysicist and the country’s first professional meteor scientist . His research primarily focuses on the long-term orbital dynamics of comets and meteoroid streams

(Class of 2009) and completed his Ph.D. in the UK under the supervision of astrophysicist Dr. David Asher.

: The IAU officially named a minor planet (asteroid) after him to honor his contributions to meteor science.

He also closely followed developments in lunar exploration, having expressed excitement about the Artemis mission during a 2015 NASA presentation. Select Publications