Published under the auspices of the International Astronomical Union as official reference work on named minor planets, this book now covers more than 17,000 named minor planets. This edition has grown by more than 7,000 entries compared to the fifth edition and by more than 2,000 compared to the fifth edition, including its two addenda published in 2006 and 2009. It lists minor planets named after Nobel Laureates, historical or political figures, artists and various other categories of names; With short biographical info of the persons the planets are named after, discovery info and info about the minor planet orbit.