Nights with a clear sky are a rare occurrence in December in Southern Ontario, making it a challenging time for stargazing and astronomy enthusiasts. The region’s typically cloudy weather and light pollution can obscure the view of the night sky, limiting the visibility of stars, constellations, and other celestial phenomena. However, despite these challenges, there are still opportunities to observe the night sky.

I made use of the Robotic Telescope located at the Burke-Gaffney Observatory, Halifax (NS). The observatory, which is operated by the department of Astronomy and Physics in the Faculty of Science at Saint Mary’s University, is home to the Ralph Medjuck Planewave CDK24 telescope. This advanced telescope, named Ralph, is part of a suite of programs collectively referred to as “Mission Control,” allowing for remote and automated observation of the night sky.

I sent a command to the Robotic Telescope through the Communicator App and I asked to take a 3 minute exposure with a luminance filter of the asteroid (4540) Oriani, which has my last name!

(4540) Oriani is orbiting the Sun between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. It was discovered at Osservatorio San Vittore in Bologna, Italy on November 6, 1988 and it was named after the astronomer Barnabus Oriani (1752 – 1832).

In the images below you can spot 4540 Oriani as a tiny 16.06 magnitude dot of light in Taurus constellation.

And do you have an asteroid with your “own” name?