8992 Magnanimity
8892 Magnanimity is an asteroid. It was discovered on 14 October 1980 at the Purple Mountain Observatory in Nanking, China. Its alternate designation is 1980 TE7.
The asteroid was named as a result of the September 11, 2001 attacks against the Twin Towers in New York City. The Committee for the Nomenclature of Small Bodies agreed to designate three small planets with names representing some of the most basic and universal human values. They chose three bodies discovered in observatories on different continents: 8990 Compassion, 8991 Solidarity, and of course 8892 Magnanimity. The move was intended as a positive gesture to commemorate the abhorrent tragedy.
References
- This article draws heavily on the corresponding article in the Spanish-language Wikipedia, which was accessed in the version of October 23 2005.