It was discovered by Czech astronomers Miloš Tichý and Zdeněk Moravec at Kleť Observatory in South Bohemia on 16 January 1997.
[1] A first precovery was obtained during Digitized Sky Survey at Palomar Observatory in 1950, extending the body's observation arc by 47 years prior to its discovery.
[3] In 2014, an improved rotational lightcurve of Teta was obtained by American astronomer Brian Warner at his Palmer Divide Observatory in Colorado.
Lightcurve analysis gave a rotation period of 2.820±0.005 hours with a brightness amplitude of 0.30 magnitude (U=3-).
[4] This minor planet was named from Czech mythology after "Teta", the fortune-teller, heathen priestess, and member of the Přemyslid dynasty.