Luciano Tesi (; born 10 December 1931) is an Italian veterinarian, 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 ...

, discoverer of many

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, and director of the San Marcello Pistoiese Observatory. In 1980, he founded the "Amateur Group of Pistoiese Mountain" (). Later on, this resulted in the construction of the Pistoia Mountains Astronomical Observatory. As the director of the observatory, he has collaborated with many discoverers in following up

near-Earth object A near-Earth object (NEO) is any small Solar System body orbiting the Sun whose closest approach to the Sun ( perihelion) is less than 1.3 times the Earth–Sun distance (astronomical unit, AU). This definition applies to the object's orbit a ...

s and in finding minor planets since 1994. The near-Earth object and

Amor asteroid The Amor asteroids are a group of near-Earth asteroids named after the archetype object 1221 Amor . The orbital perihelion of these objects is close to, but greater than, the orbital aphelion of Earth (i.e., the objects do not cross Earth's orbit ...

, 15817 Lucianotesi, discovered by

Andrea Boattini Andrea Boattini (born 16 September 1969) is an Italian astronomer and a prolific discoverer of minor planets and comets. Career After developing a growing interest in minor planets, he graduated in 1996 from the University of Bologna with a t ...

and Maura Tombelli at San Marcello Pistoiese in 1994, was named in his honor.

Discoveries

Luciano Tesi 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. Funct ...

(MPC) with the discovery of many numbered

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 ...

since 1994 ''(see table)'', mostly in collaboration with several other astronomers. Together with Giancarlo Fagioli, he also discovered the main-belt asteroid 280641 Edosara, which was erroneously credited to "T. esi" by the MPC. Co-discoveries made by Tesi/Fagioli appear as 3 separate records in the MPC's List of "Minor Planet Discoverers".

List of discovered minor planets

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tesi, Luciano 1931 births Discoverers of asteroids * 21st-century Italian astronomers Living people 20th-century Italian astronomers People from Monsummano Terme

Discoveries

List of discovered minor planets

See also

References