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P/2011 JB15 (Spacewatch-Boattini) was originally discovered as an asteroid by Spacewatch team using the 0.90-m f/3 reflector + CCD from Kitt Peak, Arizona – USA, on 2011, May 8 and 12, and designated by the Minor Planet Center 2011 JB15. … Continue reading →

C/2011 J3 (LINEAR) was discovered on 2011, May 14.38 by the LINEAR survey with a 1.0-m f/2.15 reflector + CCD. It was subsequently placed on the NEO Confirmation Page of the Minor Planet Center under the temporary designation BZ39121. I … Continue reading →

Albino Carbognani (OAVdA – Osservatorio Astronomico Valle d’Aosta) and myself sent some weeks ago a paper describing the photometric behaviour of NEA 2010 WA9 to Prof. Richard Binzel, editor of the Minor Planet Bulletin. This NEA showed an amplitude of … Continue reading →

C/2011 F1 (LINEAR) was discovered on 2011, Mar. 17.28 by the LINEAR survey with a 1.0-m f/2.15 reflector + CCD. It was subsequently placed on the NEO Confirmation Page of the Minor Planet Center under the temporary designation BY58897. The … Continue reading →

In the last days of February, the MPC published the update of the statistics of all observatories who contribute to the MP astrometry. The page is visible at this URL: http://www.minorplanetcenter.net/iau/special/CountObsByYear.txt In 2010, we performed 2980 astrometric measurements of 744 … Continue reading →

C/2011 C1 is the 58th comet found by Robert H. McNaught, the most prolific comet discoverer of all time. It was discovered on 2011, Feb. 10.71 with the 0.5-m Uppsala Schmidt telescope + CCD during the course of the Siding … Continue reading →

On the night between Feb. 01 and 02 the sky was very good so I’ve decided to confirm some faint targets in the NEOCP, at that time full of Pan-STARRS discoveries. The majority of them were out-of-range for my equipment … Continue reading →

This last January has been the best since I’ve started observing. In 12 nights I’ve observed 193 minor planets and 24 comets, with 607 astrometric measures sent to the MPC. This was primarily due to the weather: an amazing winter … Continue reading →

Discovered on 1927, Nov. 15 by Arnold Schwassmann and Arno Arthur Wachmann from Hamburg Observatory, Bergedorf, Germany, this comet is well known in the astronomical comunity for its periodic (although not regular) outbursts. When in “quiescent” state its magnitude is … Continue reading →

Comet C/2011 A3 (Gibbs) was discovered on 2011, Jan. 15.51 by Alex Gibbs (during the course of the Catalina Sky Survey) in four 22-sec exposures taken with the 0.68-m Schmidt on Mt.Bigelow. He described that the comet showed a 5″ … Continue reading →