China names asteroid after Nobel laureate

Beijing: Chinese authorities have named an asteroid after scientist Tu Youyou who won the 2015 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine for her work with artemisinin, which is now widely used to fight malaria.

Li Bin, head of the national health and family planning commission on Monday presented the certificate of the named asteroid to 85-year old pharmacologist, China Radio International reported.

The code of the asteroid is 21230.

The last four digits represent her birthday. Tu Youyou was born on December 30, 1930.