On September 8 a ceremony was held in Beijing to officially announce Asteroid Wuweiren, approved by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) earlier in April.

Wu, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and a major pioneer of Chinese deep space exploration, is the winner of the World Space Award, the highest award of the International Astronautical Federation, in 2020.

Wu was appointed as the chief designer of China's lunar exploration program in 2008. Under his guidance, China launched three lunar probes, the last one being Chang'e-4, which made the first-ever soft landing on the far side of the moon.

The asteroid, coded 281880, was discovered by the Near-Earth Object Telescope at the Purple Mountain Observatory in east China.

Asteroids are the only celestial bodies that can be named by their discoverers. The naming is recognized as an international and permanent honor.