'Johann Palisa' (
December 6 1848–
May 2 1925) was an
Austrian
astronomer, born in
Troppau in
Austrian
Silesia (now in the
Czech Republic).
He was a prolific discoverer of
asteroids, discovering 122 in all, from
136 Austria in
1874 to
1073 Gellivara in
1923. Some of his notable discoveries include
153 Hilda,
216 Kleopatra,
243 Ida,
253 Mathilde,
324 Bamberga, and the
Amor asteroid 719 Albert.
The
asteroid 914 Palisana and the
Palisa crater on the
Moon were named in his honour.
Early work
From 1866 to 1870, Palisa studied mathematics and astronomy at the
University of Vienna; however, he did not graduate until 1884. Despite this, by 1870 he was an assistant at the University's observatory, and a year later gained a position at the observatory in Geneva. A few years later, in 1872, at the age of 24, Palisa became the director of the Austrian Naval Observatory in
Pola. While at Pola, he discovered his first asteroid,
136 Austria, on March 18, 1874. Along with this, he discovered twenty-seven minor planets and one comet. During his stay in Pola he used a small six-inch
refractor telescope to aid in his research.
External links
★
Johann Palisa, the most successful visual discoverer of asteroids Herbert Raaba
Obituaries
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Anzeige des Todes von Johann Palisa, von Hepperger, J., , , Astronomische Nachrichten,