Date
Meaning & History
Possibly intended as a feminine form of the name Hercules. The large asteroid named '532 Herculina' was discovered on April 20, 1904, by Max Wolf in Heidelberg, Germany and initially catalogued as 1904 NY.
The origin of its name is not known; it may be named after the mythical Hercules, given a feminine form as were all asteroids at the time, or after an unknown woman of that name. The bulk of the asteroids discovered by Wolf around this date were named for characters in operas, but if this name was also drawn from such a source, no explanation has been recorded.
The origin of its name is not known; it may be named after the mythical Hercules, given a feminine form as were all asteroids at the time, or after an unknown woman of that name. The bulk of the asteroids discovered by Wolf around this date were named for characters in operas, but if this name was also drawn from such a source, no explanation has been recorded.