2026-01-20 · Asteroid spotlight · 7 min
Asteroid spotlight: 3 Juno — main-belt classic with a mythological name
Meet 3 Juno: why it’s famous historically, what its orbital numbers mean, and where the name comes from.
3 Juno is one of the earliest discovered main-belt asteroids. It’s a great example because:
- it is well-studied, and
- its name comes from mythology (Juno, Roman goddess).
Reading the key parameters
- a around a few AU: consistent with the main belt
- modest e and i: typical for many belt objects
Where the name comes from
Historically, early asteroids were often named after mythological figures. Today, naming is more diverse, but the mythological tradition remains visible.
Keyword focus: “3 Juno asteroid”, “main belt orbit parameters”, “mythology asteroid names”.
Related reading
- /en/blog/mythology-in-space-names
- /en/blog/orbit-in-3-minutes
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