David B. Healy (22 December 1936 – 6 June 2011) was an American

astrophotographer 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 ...

and

asteroid An asteroid is a minor planet of the Solar System#Inner solar system, 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 o ...

discoverer who is known for his contributions to

Burnham's Celestial Handbook Robert Burnham Jr. (June 16, 1931 – March 20, 1993) was an American astronomer, best known for writing the classic three-volume ''Burnham's Celestial Handbook''. He is the discoverer of numerous asteroids including the Mars-crosser, Mars crossi ...

.JPL Small-Body Database Browser 66479 Healy (1999 RQ33)
/ref>

History

David B. Healy was born 1936 in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wo ...

. He was an automotive industry analyst for

Drexel Burnham Drexel Burnham Lambert was an American multinational investment bank that was forced into bankruptcy in 1990 due to its involvement in illegal activities in the junk bond market, driven by senior executive Michael Milken. At its height, it was a ...

in New York and later a stock broker before retiring to Arizona. He dedicated his life to Astronomy and the discovery of planets. While in New York, he was a longtime member of the Astronomical Society of Long Island. Once in Sierra Vista, Arizona, he became a valued member of the Huachuca Astronomy Club. He was well known for his pioneering work in astrophotography (in particular with cooled and hypered emulsion astrophotography before silver became silicon) with multiple contributions to leading astronomy publications. Healy established the

Junk Bond Observatory The Junk Bond Observatory (JBO; code: 701) is located in the Sonoran Desert at Sierra Vista, Arizona, United States. It was established by amateur astronomer David Healy in his backyard in 1996, using a Celestron 14 SCT and a 16-inch Meade L ...

in Arizona for visual work and recoveries of minor planets. On September 4, 1999 a

main-belt The asteroid belt is a torus-shaped region in the Solar System, located roughly between the orbits of the planets Jupiter and Mars. It contains a great many solid, irregularly shaped bodies, of many sizes, but much smaller than planets, called ...

was discovered by

Myke Collins 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 nu ...

and M. White at

Anza Anza, Anzah, or de Anza might refer to: Communities United States * Anza, California, a town in Riverside County, California * Anza, Imperial County, California, a town in Imperial County, California, along California State Route 111 * Camp Anza, ...

. It was called 66479 Healy after the founder of the JBO. Healy was also an original contributor to Burnham's Celestial Handbook. The JBO established by Healy operates a 32-inch Ritchey Chretien reflector chiefly for minor planet

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. Histor ...

and is credited with over 500 discoveries.David Healy – astrophotographer
/ref> After his chief co-discoverer

Jeffrey Medkeff Jeffrey S. Medkeff (1968 – 3 August 2008), usually known as Jeff Medkeff, was a prominent science writer and educator. He was also a designer of robotic telescopes, a minor philanthropist, and an advocate of personal and sexual freedom. Early ...

died in 2008, Dave decided to participate in the search for exo-planets. His telescope is still being used in the search for these planetary systems. He was a Contributing Editor of ''

Astronomy Magazine ''Astronomy'' is a monthly American magazine about astronomy. Targeting amateur astronomers, it contains columns on sky viewing, reader-submitted astrophotographs, and articles on astronomy and astrophysics for general readers. History ''Ast ...

''. Bloomberg Press reviewed Healy's transition from investment analyst to amateur astronomer in the following article

List of discovered minor planets

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Healy, David B 1936 births 2011 deaths American astronomers Discoverers of minor planets *