It was discovered by James Craig Watson in 1873 and is the first such Mars-crosser asteroid to be identified.

It has a rather eccentric orbit that sometimes brings it closer to the Sun than the planet Mars.

With an original observation arc of only 22 days, 132 Aethra was a lost asteroid between 1873 and 1922.

[4][5] The varying light curve of the asteroid implies an elongated or irregular shape for its body.

It is named after Aethra, the mother of Theseus in Greek mythology.