51881

51881 is a minor planet in the asteroid belt, located between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. It was discovered on February 26, 1991, by astronomers Eleanor F. Helin and Kenneth J. Lawrence at the Palomar Observatory in California, United States. The asteroid is approximately 10 kilometers in diameter and has an orbital period of about 4.4 Earth years. Its orbit is moderately eccentric and inclined, with an average distance from the Sun of 2.7 astronomical units. The asteroid's spectral type is X, which suggests it has a primitive composition, possibly similar to carbonaceous chondrite meteorites. 51881 has not been named, and it is designated with its provisional designation 1991 DQ. The asteroid's discovery was part of the Palomar Planet-Crossing Asteroid Survey, which aimed to identify potentially hazardous asteroids.