Miguel Itzigsohn (1908–1978) was an

Argentine Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...

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 ...

and observer of

comet A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that warms and begins to release gases when passing close to the Sun, a process called outgassing. This produces an extended, gravitationally unbound atmosphere or Coma (cometary), coma surrounding ...

s, 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 ...

with the discovery of 15

asteroid An asteroid is a minor planet—an object larger than a meteoroid that is neither a planet nor an identified comet—that orbits within the Solar System#Inner Solar System, inner Solar System or is co-orbital with Jupiter (Trojan asteroids). As ...

s between 1948 and 1954. The outer main-belt asteroid 1596 Itzigsohn, which he discovered himself, was named in his memory on 1 August 1980 (). Itzigsohn was a professor of

spherical A sphere (from Ancient Greek, Greek , ) is a surface (mathematics), surface analogous to the circle, a curve. In solid geometry, a sphere is the Locus (mathematics), set of points that are all at the same distance from a given point in three ...

and practical astronomy. From 1955 to 1972, he was director of the extrameridian astronomy department at the

La Plata Astronomical Observatory The La Plata Astronomical Observatory () is an observatory located in the city of La Plata, capital of the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Its IAU code is 839. History La Plata was a planned city, intended as the capital of the province a ...

, specializing in

astrometry Astrometry is a branch of astronomy that involves precise measurements of the positions and movements of stars and other Astronomical object, celestial bodies. It provides the kinematics and physical origin of the Solar System and this galaxy, th ...

and

celestial mechanics Celestial mechanics is the branch of astronomy that deals with the motions of objects in outer space. Historically, celestial mechanics applies principles of physics (classical mechanics) to astronomical objects, such as stars and planets, to ...

. He was responsible for the surge in observational and computational activity in studies of minor planets in Argentina following World War II. G. Sitarski, "20. Positions and motions of minor planets" Trans. IAU, 18, 195 (1982).

References

External links

Lista de cientificos
(in Spanish) 20th-century Argentine astronomers Argentine Jews Discoverers of asteroids * Place of birth missing 1908 births 1978 deaths {{astronomer-stub