As minor planet discoveries are confirmed, they are given a permanent number by the IAU's Minor Planet Center, and the discoverers can then submit names for them, following the IAU's naming conventions. The list below concerns those minor planets in the specified span of numbers that have received names, and explains the meanings of those names. Besides the Minor Planet Circulars (in which the citations are published), a key source is Lutz D. Schmadel's Dictionary of Minor Planet Names. Meanings that do not quote a reference (the "†" links) are tentative.
Minor planets not yet given a name have not been included in this list.
| Contents: |
|---|
| Name | Provisional Designation | Source of Name |
|---|---|---|
| 73001–73100 | ||
| 73059 Kaunas | 2002 FO5 | Kaunas, Lithuania † |
| 73079 Davidbaltimore | 2002 GX8 | David Baltimore, American biologist and Nobelist, seventh president of the California Institute of Technology † |
| 73301–73400 | ||
| 73342 Guyunusa | 2002 JX115 | Guyunusa, wife of the warrior Tacuabé, native Uruguayans sold for exhibition in France in 1833 † |
| 73401–73500 | ||
| 73442 Feruglio | 2002 NE5 | Chiara Feruglio, Italian astronomer † |
| 73453 Ninomanfredi | 2002 NJ34 | Nino Manfredi, Italian actor † |
| 73465 Buonanno | 2002 NP55 | Roberto Buonanno, Italian astronomer, director of the Osservatorio Astronomico di Roma † |
| 73491 Robmatson | 2002 PO164 | Robert D. Matson, American amateur astronomer and software developer † |
| 73501–73600 | ||
| 73511 Lovas | 2002 YD3 | Miklós Lovas, Hungarian astronomer † |
| 73517 Cranbrook | 2003 FG78 | Cranbrook Institute of Science in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan † |
| 73533 Alonso | 2003 OC6 | Fernando Alonso, Spanish Formula One racing driver † |
| 73601–73700 | ||
| 73637 Guneus | 1973 SX1 | One of the Achaean leaders in the Trojan War † |
| 73640 Biermann | 1977 RM | Ludwig Biermann, German astrophysicist † |
| 73670 Kurthopf | 1982 QP | Kurt Hopf, German head teacher of the primary school of Hof, Germany, director of the Sternwarte Hof (Hof Public Observatory) and astronomical educator † |
| 73687 Thomas Aquinas | 1990 TQ2 | Saint Thomas Aquinas, Italian Catholic philosopher and theologian † |
| 73692 Gürtler | 1991 RL3 | Joachim Gürtler, German astronomer † |
| 73693 Dorschner | 1991 RQ3 | Johann Dorschner, German astronomer † |
| 73700 von Kues | 1991 TW4 | Nicholas of Cusa (Nicolaus Cusanus) (Nikolaus Krebs von Kues), German theologian and philosopher † |
| 73701–73800 | ||
| 73703 Billings | 1991 TL15 | Gary W. Billings, Canadian geophysicist and amateur astronomer † ‡ |
| 73704 Hladiuk | 1991 TW15 | Donald W. Hladiuk, Canadian geologist and amateur astronomer † ‡ |
| 73782 Yanagida | 1994 TD15 | Yanagida, Ishikawa, Japan, home of the Yanagida Astronomical Observatory (the discovery site) † |
| 73801–73900 | ||
| 73883 Asteraude | 1997 DQ | Asteroids discovered by members of Association des utilisateurs de détecteurs électroniques (AUDÉ) are called "astéraudes" † |
| 73885 Kalaymoodley | 1997 EV | Kalayvany Moodley, South African friend of the discoverer † |
| Preceded by 72,001–73,000 |
Meanings of minor planet names List of minor planets: 73,001–74,000 |
Succeeded by 74,001–75,000 |