Asteroid Named For Country Music Singer

Archie Warnock, guitar player for the Washington, DC bluegrass band DeSoto was given the opportunity in 1978 to officially name a newly-discovered asteroid. Warnock and astronomer E. L. G. Bowell of Lowell Observatory discovered the asteroid in the course of a search they conducted at Lowell in 1983, using photographic plates taken with the 48" Schmidt Telescope at Palomar Observatory by P. Usher of Pennsylvania State University.

Warnock, in keeping with his longtime involvement in bluegrass and country music, chose to name the newly confirmed asteroid in honor of the late Keith Whitley, a country music singer who died in 1989 at the age of 34. The citation naming the asteroid, as approved by the International Astronomical Union, reads:

(4779) Whitley = 1978 XQ
Discovered 1978 Dec. 3 by E. Bowell and A. Warnock from plates taken by P. Usher at Palomar Observatory. Named in honor of Keith Whitley (1954-1989), American country music singer who died tragically at the zenith of his profession. A powerful and emotional performer, Whitley began his professional career as a teenager, playing bluegrass music with Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys. His later success as a solo artist was a source of joy and inspiration for the many fans and friends he made over the years. He helped rekindle an interest in traditional country music, reviving an entire industry.

(4779) Whitley = 1978 XQ

Discovered 1978 Dec. 3 by E. Bowell and A. Warnock from plates taken by P. Usher at Palomar Observatory.

Named in honor of Keith Whitley (1954-1989), American country music singer who died tragically at the zenith of his profession. A powerful and emotional performer, Whitley began his professional career as a teenager, playing bluegrass music with Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys. His later success as a solo artist was a source of joy and inspiration for the many fans and friends he made over the years. He helped rekindle an interest in traditional country music, reviving an entire industry.

When Warnock and Bowell discovered the asteroid, by "blinking" two photographic plates to look for the motion of the asteroids relative to nearby fixed stars, they did not have enough observations to determine an orbit but the measured positions of the asteroid were published in the Minor Planet Circular. Last year, the asteroid was recovered by S. Nakano in Japan. The new position was compared with lists of known asteroids, and it was determined that the Warnock/Bowell asteroid had been observed again. This recovery and the subsequent calculation of the orbit is the criterion used by the IAU in deciding whether or not to name an asteroid, and the privilege of naming is given to the original discoverers.

Warnock currently plays guitar and sings with the Maryland bluegrass band DeSoto. He formerly played bass with Vintage Blend and with Mike Hamilton and the Travelin' Souls. He formerly played guitar with Baltimore's New Early Sunrise Band, and bass with Frontier Justice and Windy Ridge in the Baltimore area and with Bob Doyle and The Allegheny String Band in Central Pennsylvania.

Asteroid Named For Country Music Singer Keith Whitley