Minor Planet Named After RASC Hamilton Member

[Victor.Abraham]

A big congratulations is in order for our very own Ed Mizzi! In the latest edition of the International Astronomical Union's publication the WG Small Bodies Nomenclature (Vol 2 #15), Ed has a minor planet named after him. Although Ed did not discover this object, he has been nominated because of his continued volunteerism with the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. Ed has been the President of our club and has done, and continues to be involved in a tremendous amount of outreach, especially with young children.

With this honour Ed joins a group of people with a wide variety of contributions to natural sciences. Astronaut David Saint-Jacques is on this list as is actor Leonardo DiCaprio. The latest edition can be found here: https://www.wgsbn-iau.org/files/Bulletins/V002/WGSBNBull_V002_015.pdf?fbclid=IwAR2gUiiVJWfj5pDhj43QmZJ4QM6zLLr3bYOVzkqFWJpeSpOeGn5RJnEec5A

The object named after Ed is now designated as (10492) Mizzi = 1986 QZ1 and was discovered on August 28, 1986, by Henri Debehogne, a Belgian astronomer and a prolific discoverer of minor planets.

(10492) Mizzi = 1986 QZ1 is a minor planet and one of over 540,000 identified objects in the main-belt, located between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.

A minor planet is an astronomical object in direct orbit around the Sun that is neither a dominant planet nor a comet, and thus includes the dwarf planets. The orbital categories of minor planets are the asteroids, trojans, centaurs, Kuiper belt objects, and other trans-Neptunian objects.

Congratulations Ed!

[John.Devonshire]

Congratulations Ed!!!!!!!!

Well deserved.

[Jeff.Booth]

The minor planet named after Ed Mizzi is about 9.707 km in diameter.
It has a rotation period of 36.338 hours.
Absolute magnitude:  12.86
Geometric albedo:  0.171

It is way out there ... beween Mars and Jupiter.

Here is link to Ed Mizzi's 'Oribital Viewer' .... watch him go around in circles:

https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/tools/sbdb_lookup.html#/?sstr=10492&view=VOPDA

[Jeff.Booth]

Here is what Minor Planet Mizzi would look like ... well, sized for a Google map/Waterdown comparison ...
jeff

[Jeff.Parsons]

Congratulations Ed. Hamilton Centre is fortunate to have you as a member.

[Ed.Mizzi]

Thanks to everyone for your heartfelt congratulatory notes. I am very humbled by this but also extremely excited.

Sincerely
Ed