Paolo Chiavenna is an Italian amateur

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 co-

discoverer of minor planets This is a list of minor-planet discoverers credited by the Minor Planet Center with the discovery of one or several minor planets (such as near-Earth and main-belt asteroids, Jupiter trojans and distant objects). , the discovery of 612,011 numb ...

, 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 15

minor planets 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 ...

during 1995–2000. He is an active observer at the

Sormano Astronomical Observatory The Sormano Astronomical Observatory ( it, Osservatorio Astronomico Sormano, obs. code: 587) is an astronomical observatory north of Milan, Italy. Located near the Swiss border at 1000 meters elevation at the mountain village of Sormano in the pr ...

in the north Italian

province of Como The Province of Como ( it, Provincia di Como; german: Provinz Como; Comasco: ) is a province in the north of the Lombardy region of Italy and borders the Swiss cantons of Ticino and Grigioni to the North, the Italian provinces of Sondrio and Le ...

. The observatory was founded in 1987 and is a member of the GIA (''Gruppo Italiano Astrometristi''), an Italian association of amateur astronomers who specialize in the observation of minor bodies. Chiavenna's activities there include

astrophotography Astrophotography, also known as astronomical imaging, is the photography or imaging of astronomical objects, celestial events, or areas of the night sky. The first photograph of an astronomical object (the Moon) was taken in 1840, but it was no ...

, software development and observation, during the course of which he has made his discoveries, all in collaboration with

Francesco Manca Francesco Manca (born November 1966, in Milan, Italy) is an Italian amateur astronomer and discoverer of minor planets at the Sormano Astronomical Observatory in northern Italy. Manca also performs follow-up astrometry of near-Earth objects (NEO ...

Piero Sicoli Piero Sicoli (born 1954) is an Italian astronomer and discoverer of minor planets, observing at the Italian Sormano Astronomical Observatory. As the observatory's coordinator, he is responsible for close encounters computation of near-Earth objec ...

, Valter Giuliani,

Augusto Testa Augusto Testa (born 1950) is an Italian amateur astronomer and a discoverer of minor planets This is a list of minor-planet discoverers credited by the Minor Planet Center with the discovery of one or several minor planets (such as near-Eart ...

and Marco Cavagna.

References

External links

Sormano Astronomical Observatory: The Staff

which includes a list of the numbered minor planets discovered at Sormano, together with their discoverers. 20th-century Italian astronomers Discoverers of asteroids * 21st-century Italian astronomers Living people Year of birth missing (living people) {{Italy-astronomer-stub