Istria is asteroid #183 and approximately 33 km in diameter. Istria is a non-family asteroid from the Asteroid Main Belt’s background population and has a rotation period of 11.77 hours. Istria’s orbit is characterized by a semi-major axis of 2.80 Astronomical Units, an eccentricity of 0.35, a period of revolution of 1 707 days, and an inclination of 26.4 degrees. Istria was discovered by the Austrian astronomer Johann Palisa at the Austrian Naval Observatory.

Istria is named after the now Croatian peninsula Istria. This peninsula was Austrian, when the Austrian Naval Observatory, from where Johann Palisa discovered several asteroids including this one, was located there. See also my articles on the asteroids Austria, Adria, and Croatia! The climate of the peninsula is neither very hot in summer nor cold in winter. Hence humans always loved to settle there and the peninsula now is a popular tourist destination. The tribe of the Histri, whose ethnicity is disputed, settled on the peninsula in Antiquity and the name Istria is derived from the name of that tribe.

Istria obviously is a place name asteroid. If it should represent more than the concrete place in Croatia, then a tourist destination without any peculiarities. It is a destination just for those, who love nature.