is a Japanese

dentist A dentist, also known as a dental doctor, dental physician, dental surgeon, is a health care professional who specializes in dentistry, the branch of medicine focused on the teeth, gums, and mouth. The dentist's supporting team aids in provi ...

, amateur

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

and discoverer of 13

minor planet According to the International Astronomical Union (IAU), a minor planet is an astronomical object in direct orbit around the Sun that is exclusively classified as neither a planet nor a comet. Before 2006, the IAU officially used the term ''minor ...

s. He lives in the city of Akō in the

Hyōgo Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Hyōgo Prefecture has a population of 5,469,762 () and a geographic area of . Hyōgo Prefecture borders Kyoto Prefecture to the east, Osaka Prefecture to th ...

, Japan, where his private Minami-Oda Observatory () is located. At the observatory, he observes comets and minor planets using his home-made 0.20-m reflector telescope together with his wife Kumi and daughter Saki. Familiar with electronics and mechanics, he has also developed his own CCD instrumentation. The asteroid 5591 Koyo, discovered by Japanese astronomer Takeshi Urata, was named in his honour.

References

1959 births Discoverers of asteroids * 20th-century Japanese astronomers Japanese dentists Living people {{japan-astronomer-stub