Discovered by Karl Reinmuth in 1932, it was later named after the flowering plant Aster.

Aster was discovered on 29 January 1932, by German astronomer Karl Reinmuth at Heidelberg Observatory in southern Germany.

[5] Two nights later, it was independently discovered by Italian astronomer Mario A. Ferrero at the Pino Torinese Observatory at Turin, Italy.

[3] Aster orbits the Sun in the inner main-belt at a distance of 2.0–2.5 AU once every 3 years and 5 months (1,244 days).

[6] The body's rotation period, shape and variation in magnitude shifted from unknown movements[1][7] to specific identifiable spin/shape determinations.