Caprera is asteroid #479 and also known as 1901 HJ. Caprera’s orbit is characterized by a semi-major axis of 2.72 Astronomical Units, an eccentricity of 0.22, a period of revolution of 1 638 days, and an inclination of 8.7 degrees. Caprera was discovered by the Italian astronomer Luigi Carnera at the Heidelberg-Königstuhl State Observatory, where he was an assistant of the German astronomer Max Wolf.

Caprera is named after Caprera Island, an island, which is part of the La Maddalena Archipelago at the north of the big Italian island Sardinia. Caprera Island is via a dam connected with La Maddalena Island, which is the main island of the La Maddalena Archipelago and the location of the only municipality on the archipelago. The ancient Romans had settled on Caprera Island, but after the Roman Empire broke into pieces the island was deserted until in the 18th century of the christian calendar shepherds discovered it and settled there. La Maddalena Island became a navy base and this made half of Caprera Island inaccessible. The other half of Caprera Island was in 1855 bought by the Italian general and revolutionary Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi, who had contributed to the Italian unification and the creation of the Kingdom of Italy. He in 1882 passed away on Caprera Island. His house meanwhile is a museum and the whole island a national monument. Caprera Island also is a sanctuary for seagulls, cormorants, and peregrine falcons. The south of the island is easily accessible by sailboats and to visit the island this way is common. The name Caprera probably is derived from the Italian word capra, which means goat. Many wild goats live on the island and this is commonly believed to be the origin of the island’s name.

While asteroid discoverer Luigi Carnera, who always preferred place names, probably chose the name to honor Giuseppe Garibaldi, the island is named after its goats. So Caprera hints to the island in the La Maddalena Archipelago and represents islands, where many goats live. Maybe also islands with limited access due to military facilities.