The Massachusetts Institute of Technology has named two minor planets after two girls from Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu.

Senthalir and Sharanya, Class 11 students at Coimbatore's Avila Convent, have received letters of honour from MIT.

The planets were discovered by the LINEAR programme of MIT Lincoln Laboratory.

The minor planet numbered 17,091 has been named after Senthalir, while 17092 gets Sharanya's name.

According to Senthalir's father, Dr Paramathma, this recognition was bestowed on the girls for reaching the finals of the 2003 Intel International Science and Engineering fair held in Cleveland, Ohio.

Paramathma, head of the tree breeding department, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, said his students were honoured for their research on 'suppression of branching pattern in eucalyptus trees'.