Warren B. Offutt

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Minor planets discovered: 18 [1]
(12438) 1996 CZ February 9, 1996 list
(23702) 1997 QE1 August 28, 1997 list
(39672) 1996 BF1 January 22, 1996 list
(43997) 1997 QX August 29, 1997 list
(46695) 1997 CX13 February 4, 1997 list
(58469) 1996 RC September 7, 1996 list
(58484) 1996 TO3 October 8, 1996 list
(73900) 1997 FD March 19, 1997 list
(73966) 1997 XG10 December 6, 1997 list
(85473) 1997 LV5 June 12, 1997 list
(85547) 1997 XF10 December 5, 1997 list
(100598) 1997 QO1 August 31, 1997 list
(100695) 1997 YK11 December 28, 1997 list
(118215) 1996 BN1 January 24, 1996 list
(155411) 1996 DG3 February 28, 1996 list
(239810) 1997 EC26 March 11, 1997 list
(382427) 1999 CF3 February 9, 1999 list
(483405) 1999 CP2 February 7, 1999 list

Warren B. Offutt (February 13, 1928 – September 20, 2017) was an American amateur astronomer and amateur radio operator.[2]

Offutt is credited by the Minor Planet Center with the discovery of 17 asteroids[1] and has notably collaborated with professional astronomers in observing Kuiper belt objects (KBOs). In 1999 he won the Amateur Achievement Award of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific.[3]

Offutt and his wife, Beverly (since deceased), moved from Illinois to New Mexico when he retired from engineering, specializing in precision astrometry of faint objects in the Solar System. He operates the W & B Observatory (709) in the U.S. village of Cloudcroft, New Mexico, in the Sacramento Mountains, at an altitude of 2500 m (8300 ft).[2][4]

In 1997, Offutt helped with three more major discoveries, among them confirmation of a then-newly discovered moon of Uranus, Sycorax.[5]

On 11 February 1998, the outer main-belt asteroid 7639 Offutt was named after him, just before his 70th birthday (M.P.C. 31297).[2][6]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Minor Planet Discoverers (by number)". Minor Planet Center. 29 October 2018. Retrieved 10 April 2019.
  2. ^ a b c Schmadel, Lutz D. (2007). "(7639) Offutt". Dictionary of Minor Planet Names. Springer Berlin Heidelberg. pp. 607–608. doi:10.1007/978-3-540-29925-7_6593. ISBN 978-3-540-00238-3.
  3. ^ "Astronomical Society of the Pacific". Retrieved 2009-12-15.[permanent dead link]
  4. ^ "IAU List of Observatories". Retrieved 2009-12-15.
  5. ^ Gladman, Brett J.; Nicholson, Philip D.; Burns, Joseph A.; Kavelaars, Jj; Marsden, Brian G.; Williams, Gareth V.; et al. (April 1998). "Discovery of two distant irregular moons of Uranus". Nature. 392 (6679): 897–899. Bibcode:1998Natur.392..897G. doi:10.1038/31890. S2CID 4315601.
  6. ^ "MPC/MPO/MPS Archive". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 10 April 2019.

External links[edit]

Preceded by Amateur Achievement Award of Astronomical Society of the Pacific
1999
Succeeded by