Asteroid 120208 renamed Brentbarbee for NASA planetary defense officer

The main belt asteroid was formally named 16 October 2026 for the veteran DART and OSIRIS-REx mission scientist.

Planetary Science Reporter

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NASA scientist honored with asteroid naming AI illustrationhow this picture was made

WASHINGTON, US, Oct. 16, 2026 - Main-belt asteroid 120208 has been officially renamed Brentbarbee.^[1] Brent Barbee currently serves as Planetary Defense Officer at NASA’s Planetary Defense Coordination Office.^[2] He was a member of the investigation team for the DART asteroid deflection mission, and worked on the flight dynamics team for the OSIRIS-REx asteroid sample return mission.^[3] ^[4] He previously was Lead Planetary Defense Application Scientist at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.^[5] Space Nugget. Official asteroid names are permanent once approved. They are assigned only after formal review, and are used by all astronomical observatories and mission teams worldwide.

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Main-belt asteroid 120208 has been renamed "Brentbarbee" in recognition of Brent Barbee’s work. · NASA ScienceUnited Statesofficial source
Brent Barbee currently holds the position of Planetary Defense Officer at NASA’s Planetary Defense Coordination Office. · NASA ScienceUnited Statesofficial source
Brent Barbee was a member of the investigation team for NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission. · NASA ScienceUnited Statesofficial source
Brent Barbee served on the flight dynamics team for NASA’s OSIRIS-REx asteroid sample return mission. · NASA ScienceUnited Statesofficial source
Brent Barbee previously served as Lead Planetary Defense Application Scientist at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. · NASA ScienceUnited Statesofficial source

All of them publish from United States. 1 is an official body, so this traces to the document itself.