The Vatican Observatory is pleased to report that four asteroids have been named for important figures in the history of the Observatory, including Pope Leo XIII, who re-founded the Observatory in 1891.

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.