It was discovered on 27 August 1987, by Belgian astronomer Eric Elst at ESO's La Silla Observatory site in northern Chile.
Vestian asteroids have a composition akin to cumulate eucrites (HED meteorites) and are thought to have originated deep within 4 Vesta's crust, possibly from the Rheasilvia crater, a large impact crater on its southern hemisphere near the South pole, formed as a result of a subcatastrophic collision.
[1] This minor planet was named in honor of Belgian painter and internationally prominent 20th century artist, Pierre Alechinsky (born 1927), known for his treatment of colors, versatility and graphic humor.
[10] According to the survey carried out by the NEOWISE mission of NASA's space-based Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, Alechinsky measures 4.4 kilometers in diameter and its surface has an albedo of 0.194,[6] while the Collaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes an albedo of 0.24 – which derives from 8 Flora, the largest member and namesake of this orbital family – and calculates a diameter of 3.9 kilometers with an absolute magnitude of 14.2.
[5] In February 2013, two rotational lightcurves of Alechinsky were obtained from photometric observations in the R-band by astronomers at the Palomar Transient Factory, California.