Main belt asteroid 3989 is named after Odin, the chief Norse God. The asteroid was discovered on 8 September 1986 by P. Jensen at the Brorfelde Observatory in Denmark.
Odin is featured on one of a collection of carved stones which are part of a display at the rear of St. Andrew Church. The display also includes some interpretation of the crosses. The stone in question is Manx Cross 128 which is named 'Thorwald's Cross'.
Thorwald's Cross
Is a partially surviving runestone, which is 'particularly unusual in juxtaposing image on opposite face depicting two pivotal moments in pagan mythology and Christian belief.
Odin is displayed on the numbered face which shows the end of the known world according to the Norse legend of Ragnarok.
The standing ‘figure of Odin, chief of the Norse gods, armed with a spear and with a raven on his shoulder. He is shown being devoured by the giant wolf Fenrir in the great battle between the gods and the giants, and monsters of evil. The gods eventually prevail, but at great costin a victory which leads to a new mythological world order.
On the other side, a second figure of similar size is shown holding a book and a cross, alongside a large fish; all of these motifs are potent symbols of Christianity...'
Source: "A Guide To The Archaeological Sites of the Isle of Man up to AD 1500" BY Andrew Johnson and Allision Fox (ISBN:978-0-9554043-5-1)
A 3D Model of the Sigurd Cross can be found at the following link:
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3989 Odin (1986 RM) is a main asteroid belt asteroid which was discovered by P. Jensen on 8 September 1986 at the Brorfelde Observatory in Denmark. Further technical data can be found at the following link: (
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Odin Planitia is a plain on the planet Mercury: (
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There is a photograph of Odin Planitia taken by NASA's Messenger spacecraft:
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The following information accompanies the photograph:
'On March 5 we saw an area to the west of Caloris. Today we travel to the east of the basin, another area that is thought to be related to ejecta from the Caloris basin impact event. The knobs and unusual corrugated texture are part of Odin Planitia and may have formed from ejecta and impact melt. Schiaparelli Dorsum, nearly aligned with the terminator (the division between the dayside and night side of the planet), cuts across the scene from top to bottom.
This image was acquired as part of MDIS's high-incidence-angle base map. The high-incidence-angle base map complements the surface morphology base map of MESSENGER's primary mission that was acquired under generally more moderate incidence angles. High incidence angles, achieved when the Sun is near the horizon, result in long shadows that accentuate the small-scale topography of geologic features. The high-incidence-angle base map was acquired with an average resolution of 200 meters/pixel.
Date acquired: July 07, 2012
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 250134169
Image ID: 2154159
Instrument: Wide Angle Camera (WAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
WAC filter: 7 (748 nanometers)
Center Latitude: 24.83°
Center Longitude: 195.2° E
Resolution: 228 meters/pixel
Scale: This scene is approximately 400 km (250 miles) across
Incidence Angle: 88.8°
Emission Angle: 53.2°
Phase Angle: 142.0°
The MESSENGER spacecraft is the first ever to orbit the planet Mercury, and the spacecraft's seven scientific instruments and radio science investigation are unraveling the history and evolution of the Solar System's innermost planet. MESSENGER acquired over 150,000 images and extensive other data sets. MESSENGER is capable of continuing orbital operations until early 2015.'