Lutz Dieter Schmadel (2 July 1942, in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

– 21 October 2016) was a German

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 ...

and a prolific 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, who worked at the

Astronomisches Rechen-Institut The Astronomical Calculation Institute (german: Astronomisches Rechen-Institut; ARI) is a research institute in Heidelberg, Germany, dating from the 1700s. Beginning in 2005, the ARI became part of the Center for Astronomy at Heidelberg Univers ...

(ARI) of the

University of Heidelberg } Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, (german: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg; la, Universitas Ruperto Carola Heidelbergensis) is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, ...

. His special interest was the

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 ...

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. Among his numerous discoveries were the three main-belt asteroids

8661 Ratzinger 8661 Ratzinger, provisional designation , is an Eoan asteroid from the outer region of the asteroid belt, approximately 13.4 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 14 October 1990, by German astronomers Lutz Schmadel and Freimut Börngen a ...

, 10114 Greifswald and 11508 Stolte. He was the author of the Dictionary of Minor Planet Names, a reference book containing information about the discovery and naming of 12,804 asteroids (March 2006). One asteroid 2234 Schmadel, discovered in 1977, was named in his honor. The asteroid 8811 Waltherschmadel was named for his father, Walther Schmadel (1902–1944), who died at the Eastern Front near Stalingrad during WWII.

Discoveries

Lutz Schmadel is 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 ...

with the discovery of 245

s made between 1960 and 1993.

List of discovered minor planets

Works

Dictionary of Minor Planet Names
Google books * ''Dictionary of minor planet names (5th Edition)''. Springer Verlag, Berlin/Heidelberg 2003, * ''Dictionary of minor planet names (Addendum to the 5th Edition: 2003-2005)''. Springer Verlag, Berlin/Heidelberg 2006, * ''Dictionary of minor planet names (Addendum to the 5th Edition: 2006-2008)''. Springer Verlag, Berlin/Heidelberg 2006, * ''Dictionary of minor planet names (6th Edition)''. Springer Verlag, Berlin/Heidelberg 2012,

References

External links

Asteroid 1992 RY "Sünkel" (German)

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20110607165247/http://www.ari.uni-heidelberg.de/mitarbeiter/Schmadel/ Homepage of Lutz Schmadel {{DEFAULTSORT:Schmadel, Lutz 1942 births 2016 deaths Discoverers of asteroids * 20th-century German astronomers