Regina Podstanická (née Šáškyová; 25 March 1928 – 20 November 2000) was a Slovak astronomer. She co-discovered

1989 Tatry 1989 Tatry, provisional designation , is a carbonaceous Vestian asteroid and tumbling Slow rotator (minor planet), slow rotator from the inner regions of the asteroid belt, approximately 16 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 20 March ...

, the first minor planet discovered from Slovakia.

Life

Podstanická was born as Regina Šáškyová on 20 March 1928 in the village of Látky in central Slovakia. She was educated at the grammar school in

Banská Bystrica Banská Bystrica (, also known by other #Etymology, alternative names) is a city in central Slovakia, located on the Hron River in a long and wide valley encircled by the mountain chains of the Low Tatras, the Greater Fatra, Veľká Fatra, and t ...

and studied physics at the

Comenius University Comenius University Bratislava () is the largest university in Slovakia, with most of its faculties located in Bratislava. It was founded in 1919, shortly after the creation of Czechoslovakia. It is named after Jan Amos Comenius, a 17th-century ...

, graduating in 1952. Following her graduation she worked at the

Slovak Academy of Sciences The Slovak Academy of Sciences (, or SAV) is the main scientific and research institution in Slovakia fostering basic and strategic basic research. It was founded in 1942, closed after World War II, and then reestablished in 1953. Its primary ...

, focusing on study of

perseids The Perseids are a prolific meteor shower associated with the comet Swift–Tuttle that are usually visible from mid-July to late-August. The meteoroid, meteors are called the Perseids because they appear from the general direction of the const ...

at the Skalné Pleso Skalnaté pleso Observatory. On 20 March 1955 Podstanická and her fellow Slovak Academy of Sciences astronomer Alois Paroubek discovered the

minor planet, becoming the first minor planet discoverers from Slovakia. Between 1957 and 1961 she worked as a physics teacher at a grammar school in

Zvolen Zvolen (; ; ) is a city in central Slovakia, situated on the confluence of Hron and Slatina rivers. It is famous for several historical and cultural attractions. It is surrounded by Poľana mountain from the East, by Kremnické vrchy from the ...

. From 1961 until her retirement in 1988 she lectured at the

University of Žilina The University of Žilina was established on 1 October 1953 as the College of Railways in Prague. In 1959, the institution changed its name to the University of Transport and moved to Žilina. As a result of the increasing role of communication ...

. Until her sudden death on 20 November 2000, she remained an active member of the Slovak Astronomical Society.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Podstanicka, Regina 1928 births 2000 deaths Academic staff of the University of Žilina Women astronomers 20th-century women physicists Slovak astronomers Slovak physicists Slovak academics People from Detva District Comenius University alumni