The Francisquito Observatory has been qualified by the Minor Planet Center of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, under the auspices of Division III of the International Astronomical Union (IAU), to conduct optical astrometric observations for a general class of astronomical objects designated as Minor Planets.  The primary focus of the Francisquito Observatory is astrometry for a specific class of objects designated as Near Earth Asteroids (NEAs).  An equally important mission for Francisquito is the dissemination of information on astronomy and solar system science to the general public.

We cordially invite all interested persons to explore this web site.  Our hope is that sufficient interest in astronomy will be generated in the mind of the casual visitor, such that their own exploration of the Universe may very well begin here.

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Questions or comments regarding the Observatory or this web site may be sent to: director@nospam.francisquito.org 

SCIENCE CONTRIBUTIONS BY FRANCISQUITO:

Above: Series of images taken over a forty-minute period of Potentially Hazardous Asteroid 2004OT11, by Francisquito Observatory.  Discovery of this minor planet was announced on 2004.07.28 following a world-wide effort by 7 observatories (including Francisquito) to confirm the initial detection made by the MIT-Lincoln Laboratory ETS facility.  The streaks in the last frame are tracks left by Earth-orbiting satellites caught just before dawn.  Below: 2004OT11 is a fairly large asteroid - approximately 1.5km in diameter - and was imaged at a distance of 101 million kilometres after having made its closest Earth approach on 2004.04.14 at a distance of 59.2 million kilometres.  Additional details on the 2004OT11 discovery can be found in the Observations section of this web site. 

Image generated with NASA/JPL's Orbit Diagram Tool (http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/orbits/)