Read More: A man with severe paralysis caused by ALS used a brain implant at home for more than 3,800 hours and was able to convert his attempts to speak into text, computer-generated information, and a voice similar to his own<\/a><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\nThen there is the number. Asteroid 861969 matches Smith\u2019s birth date, August 6, 1969, in the American date format. It is the kind of coincidence that feels almost too neat, like finding an old lyric tucked inside a star chart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The WGSBN description identifies Smith as Steven Paul \u201cElliott\u201d Smith, an influential American songwriter who lived from 1969 to 2003. The Academy\u2019s records<\/a> also list \u201cMiss Misery\u201d from Good Will Hunting as a 1998 nominee for Music Original Song, with music and lyric by Elliott Smith.<\/p>\n\n\n\nHow asteroids get names<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
An asteroid<\/a> is a small rocky object that orbits the Sun. NASA also explains that asteroids<\/a> are sometimes called minor planets and are leftovers from the early formation of the solar system about 4.6 billion years ago. In other words, they are not stars, and they are not planets in the everyday sense.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe name Elliottsmith was not simply posted online and picked up by fans. The IAU\u2019s WGSBN<\/a> is the group responsible for assigning names to minor planets, comets, and satellites of minor planets. Once that process approves a name, it becomes part of the official astronomical record.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThat detail matters. A playlist can vanish, a web page can break, and a favorite record can get scratched in a move. A minor planet name, by contrast, is built for patient use by scientists, databases, and observers over many years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
From a song to the sky<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI hope this introduces at least one new person to Elliott\u2019s brilliant discography,\u201d Campopiano told Stereogum<\/a>. He also said it was a great honor to have the idea backed by the estate and discoverers. It is a fan gesture, yes, but one that had to pass through a real scientific naming system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\nRead More: A frightened bat ray could warn the others without making a sound or splashing, by releasing a chemical signal into the water that its neighbors detect within seconds<\/a><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\nThe spark was \u201cShooting Star,\u201d a track from From a Basement on the Hill, the album released after Smith\u2019s death. There is a small science twist here. A shooting star is actually a meteor, the bright streak made when a small space rock burns in Earth\u2019s atmosphere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Elliottsmith is different. It is an asteroid, so its story is not a quick flash across the sky but a measured orbit around the Sun<\/a>. That contrast is part of the appeal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"Black-and-white](\"https:\/\/www.ecoticias.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/elliott-smith-portrait-asteroid-861969-tribute.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
A portrait of Elliott Smith, whose enduring musical legacy has been honored with the official naming of asteroid 861969 Elliottsmith by the International Astronomical Union.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\nThe telescope behind the discovery<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The official bulletin credits Pan-STARRS 1 for discovering the object. The Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System is designed to watch the sky for objects that move or change<\/a>, from near-Earth asteroids to faraway supernovas. It is less romantic than a lyric, but it is how many modern discoveries happen.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe first Pan-STARRS phase used a telescope about 6 feet wide on Haleakala, on the island of Maui. Its huge digital camera compared repeated images of the same sky fields to catch anything that shifted or brightened. Think of it as a night-shift camera with a very long to-do list.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That work is especially useful because the sky is crowded. NASA\u2019s small-body resources<\/a> track asteroids and comets with updated orbit data as new observations arrive. For anyone curious about Elliottsmith, the database is the practical route.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhy the tribute resonates<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Smith\u2019s music has often been described as quiet, intricate, and emotionally direct. The official naming text is careful rather than flashy, noting his lasting impact on many musicians and his use of celestial motifs. It specifically points to \u201cShooting Star\u201d as part of the reason the tribute feels fitting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There is a human reason this story has traveled so far online. Fans do not just keep artists alive through streams and anniversary posts. Sometimes, with enough paperwork and a little luck, they can help place a name in a system designed for objects that will outlast all of us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\nRead More: A community that was driven from its forest lands in the 1970s now protects 71,700 acres in the Congo and has managed to reduce deforestation by 87% in just one year<\/a><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\nOf course, this asteroid does not change what Smith wrote or how listeners hear him through headphones on a bus, during a late walk, or on a quiet night at home. But it gives the story a new address in the solar system. Small thing. Beautifully specific.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A permanent name<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The WGSBN says there are more than 26,000 named minor planets, which means Elliottsmith joins a large and growing family of officially named small worlds. Most will never become household names. This one, though, carries a connection that many fans can understand right away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At the end of the day, the tribute works because it stays grounded. It does not turn Smith into a myth or claim the asteroid is visible over every rooftop. It simply places his name in a catalog of the sky, where music, memory, and astronomy briefly meet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The official naming notice has been published in WGSBN Bulletin, Volume 6, Number 9.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"More than two decades after Elliott Smith\u2019s death, the late American songwriter has received an unusual kind of memorial. A … <\/p>\n
How asteroids get names<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
An asteroid<\/a> is a small rocky object that orbits the Sun. NASA also explains that asteroids<\/a> are sometimes called minor planets and are leftovers from the early formation of the solar system about 4.6 billion years ago. In other words, they are not stars, and they are not planets in the everyday sense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The name Elliottsmith was not simply posted online and picked up by fans. The IAU\u2019s WGSBN<\/a> is the group responsible for assigning names to minor planets, comets, and satellites of minor planets. Once that process approves a name, it becomes part of the official astronomical record.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That detail matters. A playlist can vanish, a web page can break, and a favorite record can get scratched in a move. A minor planet name, by contrast, is built for patient use by scientists, databases, and observers over many years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI hope this introduces at least one new person to Elliott\u2019s brilliant discography,\u201d Campopiano told Stereogum<\/a>. He also said it was a great honor to have the idea backed by the estate and discoverers. It is a fan gesture, yes, but one that had to pass through a real scientific naming system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The spark was \u201cShooting Star,\u201d a track from From a Basement on the Hill, the album released after Smith\u2019s death. There is a small science twist here. A shooting star is actually a meteor, the bright streak made when a small space rock burns in Earth\u2019s atmosphere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Elliottsmith is different. It is an asteroid, so its story is not a quick flash across the sky but a measured orbit around the Sun<\/a>. That contrast is part of the appeal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The official bulletin credits Pan-STARRS 1 for discovering the object. The Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System is designed to watch the sky for objects that move or change<\/a>, from near-Earth asteroids to faraway supernovas. It is less romantic than a lyric, but it is how many modern discoveries happen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The first Pan-STARRS phase used a telescope about 6 feet wide on Haleakala, on the island of Maui. Its huge digital camera compared repeated images of the same sky fields to catch anything that shifted or brightened. Think of it as a night-shift camera with a very long to-do list.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That work is especially useful because the sky is crowded. NASA\u2019s small-body resources<\/a> track asteroids and comets with updated orbit data as new observations arrive. For anyone curious about Elliottsmith, the database is the practical route.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Smith\u2019s music has often been described as quiet, intricate, and emotionally direct. The official naming text is careful rather than flashy, noting his lasting impact on many musicians and his use of celestial motifs. It specifically points to \u201cShooting Star\u201d as part of the reason the tribute feels fitting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There is a human reason this story has traveled so far online. Fans do not just keep artists alive through streams and anniversary posts. Sometimes, with enough paperwork and a little luck, they can help place a name in a system designed for objects that will outlast all of us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Of course, this asteroid does not change what Smith wrote or how listeners hear him through headphones on a bus, during a late walk, or on a quiet night at home. But it gives the story a new address in the solar system. Small thing. Beautifully specific.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The WGSBN says there are more than 26,000 named minor planets, which means Elliottsmith joins a large and growing family of officially named small worlds. Most will never become household names. This one, though, carries a connection that many fans can understand right away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At the end of the day, the tribute works because it stays grounded. It does not turn Smith into a myth or claim the asteroid is visible over every rooftop. It simply places his name in a catalog of the sky, where music, memory, and astronomy briefly meet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The official naming notice has been published in WGSBN Bulletin, Volume 6, Number 9.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" More than two decades after Elliott Smith\u2019s death, the late American songwriter has received an unusual kind of memorial. A … <\/p>\nFrom a song to the sky<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Read More: A frightened bat ray could warn the others without making a sound or splashing, by releasing a chemical signal into the water that its neighbors detect within seconds<\/a><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
A portrait of Elliott Smith, whose enduring musical legacy has been honored with the official naming of asteroid 861969 Elliottsmith by the International Astronomical Union.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\nThe telescope behind the discovery<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Why the tribute resonates<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Read More: A community that was driven from its forest lands in the 1970s now protects 71,700 acres in the Congo and has managed to reduce deforestation by 87% in just one year<\/a><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
A permanent name<\/h2>\n\n\n\n