1932 VB. Discovered 1932 Nov. 4 by K. Reinmuth at Heidelberg. Independently discovered 1932 Nov. 29 by E. Delporte at Uccle.

Named after the city of Rutherford, New York. (LDS)

Name proposed by Irving L. Meyer, Rutherford, N.Y. and endorsed by G. Stracke (RI 1534).

The name is erroneously interpreted in many sources as belonging to the 1908 Nobel Prize winner Lord Ernest Rutherford (1871–1937). The correct interpretation, however, has been found on a postcard, dated Feb. 2, 1937, from G. Stracke to the discoverer: “Ein amerikanischer Kollege, der selber keinen Planeten entdeckt hat, möchte gern zwei Planeten mit dem Namen “Riceia” {see planet(1230)} (Leiter Rice vom Amerik. Museum der Naturwissenschaften in New York) und “Rutherfordia” (Rutherford ist der Ort einer Privatsternwarte) taufen...”