Sormano Astronomical Observatory

The Sormano Astronomical Observatory (Italian: Osservatorio Astronomico Sormano, obs. code: 587) is an astronomical observatory north of Milan, Italy. Located near the Swiss border at 1000 meters altitude at the mountain village of Sormano in the pre-Alps, the observatory was privately funded by the Gruppo Astrofili Brianza and built in 1986.[1]

Sormano Astronomical Observatory
Osservatorio Astronomico Sormano
Sormano Astronomical Observatory
OrganizationGruppo Astrofili Brianza
Observatory code 587 
LocationColma di Sormano, Sormano, Province of Como, Lombardy, Italy
Coordinates45°52′59″N 9°13′45″E
Altitude1,128 meters (3,701 ft)
Established1986 (1986)
WebsiteOsservatorio A. Sormano
Telescopes
Cavagna Telescope0.5 m Ritchey–Chrétien
unnamed0.172 m Maksutov telescope
Location of Sormano Astronomical Observatory
Osservatorio Astronomico Sormano

Description

The observatory is known for its astrometric observations of minor planets and comets in the Solar System.[1] After its first light in January 1989, several amateur astronomers such as Marco Cavagna, Valter Giuliani, Piero Sicoli, Pierangelo Ghezzi, Francesco Manca, Paolo Chiavenna, Graziano Ventre and Augusto Testa have made their minor planet discoveries at the observatory using its 50-centimeter "Cavagna Telescope", a Ritchey–Chrétien astrograph. Astronomers at Sormano have developed their own custom software to make follow-up observations of near-Earth objects such as 4179 Toutatis and 99942 Apophis.[1]

The Eunomia asteroid 6882 Sormano, discovered by Piero Sicoli and Valter Giuliani, was named in honor of the village and its discovering nearby observatory.[1] Naming citation was published on 3 May 1996 (M.P.C. 27130).[2]

Sormano 2 Observatory

A second observatory, Sormano 2 Observatory (obs. code: L06) is located nearby, at 373 meters altitude, just south of Bellagio. The observatory also conducts astrometric observations, such as of the near-Earth object 2018 CY2 in February 2018, using a 0.28-meter reflector (f/10 + CCD).[3]

Discoveries

The Minor Planet Center credits the discovery of 344581 Albisetti directly to the Sormano Astronomical Observatory. It is named after Italian Walter Albisetti (1957–2013).[4]

Minor planets discovered: 1 [5]
344581 Albisetti24 January 2003list [A]
Discovery credited to "Sormano" by the MPC

See also

References
  1. "6882 Sormano (1995 CC1)". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 15 February 2018.
  2. "MPC/MPO/MPS Archive". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
  3. "MPEC 2018-C87 : 2018 CY2". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 15 February 2018.
  4. "344581 Albisetti (2003 BG1)". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
  5. "Minor Planet Discoverers (by number)". Minor Planet Center. 4 September 2016. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.