__NOTOC__ Vincenzo Silvano Casulli, usually known as Silvano Casulli (25 August 1944 – 24 July 2018Lutto per la scomparsa del Dr. Silvano Casulli, era cittadino onorario di Cervara di Roma
) was 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

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 ...

at his Vallemare di Borbona Observatory in

Lazio it, Laziale , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

. He 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 192

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. In 1985 he served on a team involved in using the

Hubble Space Telescope The Hubble Space Telescope (often referred to as HST or Hubble) is a space telescope that was launched into low Earth orbit in 1990 and remains in operation. It was not the first space telescope, but it is one of the largest and most versa ...

in a study that focused on

Transition Comets—UV Search for OH Emissions in Asteroids Hubble search for transition comets (Transition Comets—UV Search for OH Emissions in Asteroids) was a study involving amateur astronomers and the use of the Hubble Space Telescope, one of only six studies involving amateur astronomers approved by ...

. He was the first

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 ...

to obtain precise astronometric positions of minor planets using a

CCD camera A charge-coupled device (CCD) is an integrated circuit containing an array of linked, or coupled, capacitors. Under the control of an external circuit, each capacitor can transfer its electric charge to a neighboring capacitor. CCD sensors are a ...

. He is 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. In 1997, the inner main-belt asteroid and member of the Flora family,

7132 Casulli __NOTOC__ Year 713 ( DCCXIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 713 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era ...

, was named by astronomer Antonio Vagnozzi in his honor ().

Discoveries

9121 Stefanovalentini

On 24 February 1998, he discovered

9121 Stefanovalentini 91 may refer to: Years * 91 BC * AD 91 * 1991 * 2091 * etc. Transportation * List of highways numbered * 91 Line, a rail line * Saab 91, an aircraft Other uses * 91 (number) * '' 91:an'', a Swedish comic * ''91'', a 2017 album by Jamie Grace * ...

at the Italian Colleverde Observatory. It is a carbonaceous asteroid from the outer regions of the main-belt, approximately 30 kilometers in diameter. Casulli also obtained a light-curve from photometric observations and determined a period of 11.84 hours for the body's rotation. He named it in honour of

Stefano Valentini.

93061 Barbagallo

Together with Italian astronomer

Ermes Colombini 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 ...

and others, he co-discovered the asteroid

93061 Barbagallo 93 may refer to: * 93 (number) * one of the years 93 BC, AD 93, 1993, 2093, etc. * 93 Seine-Saint-Denis, French department, Paris, Île-de-France * Atomic number 93: neptunium * ''Ninety-Three'', English title of ''Quatrevingt-treize'' (same meanin ...

on 23 September 2000. The group-discovery is credited to the discovering observatory,

Osservatorio San Vittore The San Vittore Observatory ( it, Osservatorio San Vittore, obs. code: 552) is an astronomical observatory in Bologna, Italy. In the years from 1975 to 1981 the San Vittore Observatory (Bologna) Italy participated to the International Pl ...

, Bologna. The asteroid was named after Mariano Barbagallo, an Italian colleague and friend of Colombini.

List of discovered minor planets

References

External links

ASTEROIDE N. 7132
on the naming of asteroid 7132 Casulli, including image of Silvano Casulli
Colleverde di Guidonia
''Gruppo Astrofili Montagna Pistoiese'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Casulli, Vincenzo Silvano 1944 births 2018 deaths People from Putignano 20th-century Italian astronomers Discoverers of asteroids * 21st-century Italian astronomers