This minor planet was named after American astronomer Richard H. Emmons (1919–2005), who was a longtime professor of physics and astronomy at Kent State University and known as "Mr. Astronomy" to the thousands of children and residents who looked at the heavens through his homemade telescopes. From the 1950s to 1963, school children, Boy Scouts, church groups and community organizations visited his North Canton garage, known as "The Star Barn," which he had converted into the area's only planetarium. It seated 38. Emmons was also an early observer of artificial satellites.
