The "minor planet" 2 Pallas, now known as Planetoid Pallas, is the third-largest asteroid in the Solar System by volume and mass. It was the second asteroid discovered, on this date 224 years ago by German astronomer Heinrich Wilhelm Matthias Olbers, who considered it a planet. As more asteroids were discovered, it was classified as a "minor planet." Not until 1950, when we learned that such small bodies did not form in the same way as planets, the term "asteroid" came into use. Larger bodies, such as Pallas, are called "planetoids". With an orbital inclination of 34.8°, Pallas's orbit is unusually highly inclined to the plane of the asteroid belt, making Pallas relatively inaccessible to spacecraft. Its orbital eccentricity is nearly as large Pluto's. The best-observed of all asteroid occultations of stars was of Pallas, by 140 observers in 1983, resulting in the first accurate calculation of its diameter, 512±6 km. An occultation in 1979 showed a possible tiny satellite with a diameter of about 1 km, never confirmed. Credits: https://w.wiki/KVkW Portrait: Public Domain https://w.wiki/KVkd I joined the A ride today. But it was very cold, and I was not feeling energetic, so I rode only about two-thirds of the A route, turning back before the stretch up to the Tunitas Creek loop (15 miles and 1.5K feet). The sun had come out by then, and I'm sure I could have done the full route, but I just wasn't in the right mood. In fact, even before I drove to Gazos, I didn't want to do this ride, such a long drive to Gazos. But I'm glad I forced myself and got in some good miles and climbing.