New Asteroids from the Vatican Observatory
The latest bulletin of the IAU (International Astronomical Union) Working Group for Small Body Nomenclature contains some exciting news for scientists at the Vatican Observatory. Several asteroids co-discovered by Vatican astronomer Fr. Richard P. Boyle, SJ, together with his longtime collaborator K. Černis (of Vilnius, Lithuania), using the Vatican Observatory’s VATT telescope on Mount Graham, have received official names.
Among the names assigned are those of Don Matteo Galaverni and Fr. Bayu Risanto, SJ, members of the Vatican Observatory staff. In addition, other asteroids discovered at the Vatican Observatory by Černis and Boyle have been named after Saint Faustina Kowalska and Saint Ursula Ledóchowska, another Polish religious sister who founded the Congregation of the Agonizing Heart of Jesus. Another asteroid has been dedicated to the Jesuit García Alabiano (1549–1624), a Spanish Jesuit theologian who taught at the University of Vilnius. This list adds to the nearly 40 asteroids already named after Jesuits.
The list of recently named asteroids is as follows:
(591000) Galaverni = 2013 AB189
Discovery: 2012-12-08 / K. Černis, R. P. Boyle / Mount Graham / 290
Matteo Galaverni (born 1981) is an Italian diocesan priest and physicist. He works in the field of theoretical cosmology, including the cosmic microwave background, dark matter, dark energy, and alternative theories of gravity. Matteo is also interested in the relationship between faith, philosophy and science.
(752403) Bayurisanto = 2015 PZ114
Christophorus Bayu Risanto (born 1981) is an Indonesian Jesuit priest whose research focuses on meteorology. He improves weather forecasting by combining physics-based models with data assimilation, particularly in areas with limited observational data. His work uses humidity data from GPS meteorology together with traditional weather station data.
(798737) Faustina = 2012 VZ114
Discovery: 2012-11-13 / K. Černis, R. P. Boyle / Mount Graham / 290
Faustina Kowalska (1905–1938) was a Polish religious sister and mystic, known for her visions of Jesus and for the message of Divine Mercy. Her diary, “Divine Mercy in My Soul”, inspired the devotion to Divine Mercy practiced throughout the world. She was canonized in 2000 and is venerated as the “Apostle of Divine Mercy.
(798772) Ledochowska = 2012 WH32
Discovery: 2012-11-20 / K. Černis, R. P. Boyle / Mount Graham / 290
Ursula Ledóchowska (1865–1939) was a Polish religious sister. She founded the Congregation of the Agonizing Heart of Jesus, whose mission is to proclaim the love of the Heart of Jesus, especially through education and teaching, as well as service to the poor and the oppressed. She was canonized in 2003.
(763533) Alabiano = 2012 EN6
Garcia Alabiano (1549–1624) was a Spanish Jesuit theologian who taught at the University of Vilnius, where he served as second rector from 1585 to 1592. After acting as advisor to Cardinal Jurgis Radvila and returning to Spain following the cardinal’s death in Rome, he served two terms as rector of the College of the Immaculate Conception in Zaragoza.
How are asteroids named?
The process of naming asteroids is managed by the Working Group for Small Body Nomenclature of the International Astronomical Union.
When an asteroid is first discovered, it is given a “provisional designation” based on the date of discovery. For asteroid 2021 FE40, for example, “2021” indicates the year of discovery. The letter “F” indicates the half-month in which the discovery took place within that year. “A” indicates the first half of January, “B” the second half of January, and so on, skipping the letter “I” to avoid confusion with the number 1. The letter “F” therefore corresponds to the sixth half-month of the year, that is, the second half of March.
“E40” indicates how many other asteroids had already been discovered in that half-month. The first 25 discoveries in a half-month receive the letters A to Z (again skipping the letter “I”). The next 25 receive A1–Z1, the next 25 A2–Z2, then A3–Z3, and so on. 2021 FE40 was therefore the 1005th asteroid discovered in the second half of March 2021.
Once the asteroid’s orbit is well determined and its future trajectory can be reliably predicted, it is assigned a permanent number. About 850,000 of the 1.3 million known asteroids have received a permanent number: (1) Ceres was the first to be numbered, while (810657) 2021 FE40 received the number 810,657.
After receiving a permanent number, the discoverers of the asteroid are asked to propose a name to replace the provisional designation. The proposed name is reviewed by the Working Group and must comply with certain IAU guidelines. Names must not exceed 16 characters and are generally written as a single word.
Asteroid names must be pronounceable in at least one recognized language and must not be offensive. Names of personal pets, commercial products, or recent political or military figures are generally not permitted.