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Spanish for "bad country," early explorers of the American Southwest described as Malpais a countryside strewn with rough lava flows or rocks that was difficult to traverse. The name was suggested by Van Francis Campbell, winner of a contest to name this minor planet in conjunction with the 1999 Flagstaff Festival of Science.

Spanish for “bad country,” early explorers of the American Southwest described as Malpais a countryside strewn with rough lava flows or rocks that was difficult to traverse. (M 41935)

The name was suggested by Van Francis Campbell, winner of a contest to name this minor planet in conjunction with the 1999 Flagstaff Festival of Science.