Erich Meyer (born 6 August 1951) is an
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
n
engineer
Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...
,
amateur astronomer
Amateur astronomy is a hobby where participants enjoy observing or imaging celestial objects in the sky using the unaided eye, binoculars, or telescopes. Even though scientific research may not be their primary goal, some amateur astronomers m ...
and discoverer of
asteroid
An asteroid is a minor planet of the inner Solar System. Sizes and shapes of asteroids vary significantly, ranging from 1-meter rocks to a dwarf planet almost 1000 km in diameter; they are rocky, metallic or icy bodies with no atmosphere.
...
s.
Astronomical career
Between 1996 and 1999, using the private
observatory
An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial, marine, or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geophysical, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed. His ...
Meyer/Obermair in Davidschlag (municipality
Kirchschlag bei Linz
Kirchschlag bei Linz is a municipality in the district of Urfahr-Umgebung in the Austrian state of Upper Austria
Upper Austria (german: Oberösterreich ; bar, Obaöstareich) is one of the nine states or of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upp ...
, Austria), he discovered a total of 21 asteroids. Seven of these asteroids were discovered together with his colleague
Erwin Obermair and one together with
Herbert Raab
Herbert Raab (born 24 January 1969 in Linz, Austria) is an Austrian software engineer, amateur astronomer and discoverer of astronomical objects.
Biography
Raab finished his studies of computer science at the Johannes Kepler University of Linz ...
. Furthermore, he was involved in six other discoveries of asteroids between 1996 and 2005, which were assigned as site discoveries to the observatory Davidschlag by the
International Astronomical Union
The International Astronomical Union (IAU; french: link=yes, Union astronomique internationale, UAI) is a nongovernmental organisation with the objective of advancing astronomy in all aspects, including promoting astronomical research, outreac ...
.
Meyer's most important observations include precisie
astrometry
Astrometry is a branch of astronomy that involves precise measurements of the positions and movements of stars and other celestial bodies. It provides the kinematics and physical origin of the Solar System and this galaxy, the Milky Way.
His ...
of the
comet Shoemaker–Levy 9
Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9 ( formally designated D/1993 F2) broke apart in July 1992 and collided with Jupiter in July 1994, providing the first direct observation of an extraterrestrial collision of Solar System objects. This generated a l ...
, which he observed together with Erwin Obermair and Herbert Raab in 1993. These observations have significantly contributed to the subsequent prediction of the
impact
Impact may refer to:
* Impact (mechanics), a high force or shock (mechanics) over a short time period
* Impact, Texas, a town in Taylor County, Texas, US
Science and technology
* Impact crater, a meteor crater caused by an impact event
* Impact ...
of this
comet
A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that, when passing close to the Sun, warms and begins to release gases, a process that is called outgassing. This produces a visible atmosphere or coma, and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena ar ...
on the planet
Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the List of Solar System objects by size, largest in the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a mass more than two and a half times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined, but ...
. In 2018 Erich Meyer was able to identify the residential house of Johannes Kepler in Linz in Hofgasse (house no. 7) - after 400 years.
Meyer is a member of the Astronomical Society of Linz (''Linzer Astronomische Gemeinschaft''). By profession, he works as an engineer in the field of maintenance of industrial plants.
Awards and honors
On 4 April 1997 Meyer was presented the
Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria
The Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria (german: Ehrenzeichen für Verdienste um die Republik Österreich) is a state decoration of the Republic of Austria. It is divided into 15 classes and is the highest award in the A ...
(Silver) of the republic of Austria. The asteroid
7940 Erichmeyer was named in his honor on 10 June 1998. In 2005, Meyer was awarded a "
Gene Shoemaker
Eugene Merle Shoemaker (April 28, 1928 – July 18, 1997) was an American geologist. He co-discovered Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9 with his wife Carolyn S. Shoemaker and David H. Levy. This comet hit Jupiter in July 1994: the impact was televise ...
NEO Grant" by the
Planetary Society
The Planetary Society is an American internationally-active non-governmental nonprofit organization. It is involved in research, public outreach, and political space advocacy for engineering projects related to astronomy, planetary science, and ...
to support his work on
near-Earth objects
A near-Earth object (NEO) is any small Solar System body whose orbit brings it into proximity with Earth. By convention, a Solar System body is a NEO if its closest approach to the Sun (perihelion) is less than 1.3 astronomical units (AU). ...
.
The 2005 Gene Shoemaker NEO Grant Recipients
Retrieved 2015-06-26.
List of discovered minor planets
See also
*
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Meyer, Erich
20th-century Austrian astronomers
Discoverers of asteroids
21st-century Austrian astronomers
1951 births
*
Living people
Scientists from Linz