Focus On: (5143) Heracles

Basics

Class: O-type asteroid
Location: NEO, Apollo group
Orbit length (approx): 2.49 years
Discovered: 7th November 1991, 06:54 UTC, from Palomar Observatory, San Diego, California, by Carolyn Shoemaker
Notes: Approx 4.8km diameter, rare spectral type and binary.
Events at time of discovery:

• November 7 – The first report on carbon nanotubes is published by Sumio Iijima in Nature.
• – Birth of Felix Rosenqvist, Swedish race car driver
• – Death of Valery Aleksyev, 62, Soviet and Russian anthropologist
• – Death of Tom of Finland, 71, Finnish artist
• – Death of Ishak Haji Muhammad, 81, Malaysian writer
• – Death of Guillermo "Willy" Oddó, 48, Chilean musician

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Naming information

Name origin: Famous Greek hero and demigod who became immortal.
Mythology: Son of Zeus and Alkmene, who became a god and was worshipped in classical Greece as such. Performed the famous 12 labours for King Eurystheus of Mycenae, and had a number of other adventures. His name means 'glory (or fame) of Hera'. He was offered both chthonic libations (as a dead hero) and sacrifices as a deity. He was said to have strength, wits, courage and charm. On his ascension, he married Hebe.

Mosaic with the Labours of Hercules, 3rd century CE, found in Llíria (Valencia), held at the National Archaeological Museum of Spain in Madrid. Photo by Carole Raddato.

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Astrological data

Discovery degree: 22+ Aries
Discovery Sabian: A Pregnant Woman in a Light Summer Dress
Discovery nodal signature: Capricorn-Libra
Estimated orbital resonances: Earth 2:5, Mars 6:7, Ceres 13:7, Jupiter 19:4
Discovery chart details: New phase chart with stellium in Scorpio containing Pallas, Sun, Mars, Pluto and Moon. Heracles was sesquiquadrate Vesta. Jupiter and Sedna were trine Uranus-North Node. Sun-Mars sextile Neptune; Vesta sextile Chariklo.

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Summary and references

Meanings given include: courage, the drive to meet various needs and the possible consequences if these are thwarted^[1]; choosing healthy culture, technology, communication and speech^[2]; contending or struggling, inhibition by one's own strength or passion, prodigious feats, exalted afterlife^[3]; personal growth through meeting needs, leading to self-fulfilment (per Maslow; see note below), thrashing about, striking out, instinctive attack, but also evolution and eventual transmutation through trials and experiences^[4].

Note: Maslow's hierarchy of needs is a well-known psychological concept that was influenced by Siksika (Blackfoot) wisdom, though there are important differences. As Teju Ravilochan writes: "Whereas mainstream American narratives focus on the individual, the Blackfoot way of life offers an alternative resulting in a community that leaves no one behind."

References:
1) Amanda Painter: Pluto Enters Aquarius
2) Amable: (5143) Heracles
3) Mark Andrew Holmes: Heracles
4) Zane Stein: Heracles

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Discovery chart for (5143) Heracles: 7th November 1991, 06:54 UTC, Palomar Observatory, San Diego, California.