Francesco Manca


Francesco Manca is an Italian amateur astronomer and discoverer of minor planets at the Sormano Astronomical Observatory in northern Italy.
Manca also performs follow-up astrometry of near-Earth objects. He acquired research and observational experience on the NEOs at professional observatories in Arizona, United States at Catalina Sky Survey Non-observational work focuses on computations of orbit and close approaches of asteroids with the Earth and computation of orbit identifications of asteroids and comets.
He wrote many articles on specialistic magazines. Member of SIMCA and associated National Institute for Astrophysics. His professional activity concerns the application of measuring systems as encoders for Right Ascension and Declination, installed on telescopes and Radio telescopes such as the VLT, LBT, E-ELT, ALMA, DAG, ASTRI and NEOSTEL for ESA or on space instruments as Solar Monitoring Observatory.
The Koronian asteroid 15460 Manca, discovered by Andrea Boattini and Luciano Tesi at San Marcello Pistoiese Observatory in 1998, is named in his honour.

List of discovered minor planets

9111 Matarazzo28 January 1997 
9115 Battisti27 February 1997 
19 April 1996 
10387 Bepicolombo18 October 1996 
10605 Guidoni3 November 1996 
10606 Crocco3 November 1996 
11652 Johnbrownlee7 February 1997 
12405 Nespoli15 September 1995 
18542 Broglio29 December 1996 
18556 Battiato7 February 1997 
19318 Somanah2 December 1996 
21289 Giacomel3 November 1996 

Publications