Joel Hastings Metcalf (January 4, 1866 – February 23, 1925) was an American

astronomer An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses their studies on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. They observe astronomical objects such as stars, planets, natural satellite, moons, comets and galaxy, g ...

humanitarian Humanitarianism is an active belief in the value of human life, whereby humans practice benevolent treatment and provide assistance to other humans to reduce suffering and improve the conditions of humanity for moral, altruistic, and emotional ...

and

minister Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of government w ...

. Reverend Metcalf graduated from

Harvard Divinity School Harvard Divinity School (HDS) is one of the constituent schools of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school's mission is to educate its students either in the academic study of religion or for leadership roles in religion, gov ...

in 1892. He served as a Unitarian minister in

Burlington, Vermont Burlington is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the seat of Chittenden County. It is located south of the Canada–United States border and south of Montreal. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the population was 44,743. It ...

and in

Taunton, Massachusetts Taunton is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the county seat, seat of Bristol County. Taunton is situated on the Taunton River which winds its way through the city on its way to Mount ...

Winchester, Massachusetts Winchester is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, located 8.2 miles (13.2 km) north of downtown Boston as part of the Greater Boston metropolitan area. It is also one of the List of Massachusetts locations by per capita income, wealt ...

and

Portland, Maine Portland is the largest city in the U.S. state of Maine and the seat of Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 in April 2020. The Greater Portland metropolitan area is home to over half a million people, the 104th-largest metropol ...

. He discovered or co-discovered several

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 ...

s, including 23P/Brorsen-Metcalf and 97P/Metcalf-Brewington, and also 41

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 during 1905–1914, as credited by the

Minor Planet Center The Minor Planet Center (MPC) is the official body for observing and reporting on minor planets under the auspices of the International Astronomical Union (IAU). Founded in 1947, it operates at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. Function ...

. Two of his discoveries, the main-belt asteroids

726 Joëlla 726 Joëlla is a minor planet orbiting the Sun. It was discovered on November 22, 1911, by Joel Hastings Metcalf, in Winchester, Massachusetts, in the United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the Unite ...

and

792 Metcalfia 792 Metcalfia is a minor planet orbiting the Sun. It was discovered in 1907 by Joel Hastings Metcalf and was named after its discoverer. This is an X-type asteroid in the main belt The asteroid belt is a torus-shaped region in the Solar Syst ...

, were named in his honor.

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Joel Hastings Metcalf – Minister, Humanitarian, Astronomer

Metcalf, Joel Hastings (1866-1925)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Metcalf, Joel Hastings 1866 births 1925 deaths American astronomers Discoverers of asteroids Discoverers of comets Harvard Divinity School alumni People from Burlington, Vermont People from Taunton, Massachusetts

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