| 9686 Keesom | Discovered 1960 Sept. 24 by C. J. van Houten and I. van Houten-Groeneveld on Palomar Schmidt plates taken by T. Gehrels. |
| Dutch physicist Willem Hendrik Keesom (1876-1956) specialized in cryogenics. In 1926 he became the first to solidify helium, and among his discoveries are He I and He II. In 1932 he achieved the temperature of -272° C, only one degree above absolute zero. The name was suggested by W. A. Fröger. |
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| Reference: 20010705/MPCPages.arc | Last Updated: 2009-05-11 |
