Named in honor of Karen J. Meech (1959– ) of the Institute for Astronomy of the University of Hawaii for her pioneering studies of comets very far from the sun. Her work following new and long-period comets to great distance has been a major factor in changing our ideas about water as the predominant driver of cometary activity in most comets. Meech’s studies of (2060) = 95P/Chiron have likewise been critical in changing our understanding of the nature of the cometary coma. (M 27459) _ _.