Luboš Kohoutek facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Luboš Kohoutek
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Kohoutek at NASA Johnson Space Center mission control center during Skylab 4 mission talking with the astronauts on board about the Comet Kohoutek observations
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| Born | 29 January 1935 Zábřeh, Czechoslovakia
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| Education | Masaryk University |
| Known for | Discovery of Comet Kohoutek and other minor planets |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Planetary astronomy |
Luboš Kohoutek (born January 29, 1935) is a famous Czech astronomer. He is known for finding many comets and minor planets. One of his most famous discoveries is Comet Kohoutek, which people could see without a telescope in 1973.
He also found many planetary nebulae. These are beautiful clouds of gas and dust in space. They are formed when stars like our Sun reach the end of their lives.
About Luboš Kohoutek
Luboš Kohoutek was born in 1935. His parents were Hynek and Jarmila Kohoutek. His brother, Ctirad Kohoutek, became a well-known Czech composer.
Luboš Kohoutek has loved astronomy since he was in high school. He studied physics and astronomy at universities in Brno and Prague. He finished his studies in 1958. After that, he started working at the Astronomical Institute of the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences. There, he created an important book called Catalogue of Galactic Planetary Nebulae in 1967.
Later, Kohoutek got a job at the Bergedorf Observatory in Hamburg, Germany. In 1968, the Soviet Union took control of Czechoslovakia. Because of this, he decided to stay in West Germany in 1970. His discoveries in the 1970s made him very famous in the news.
In later years, Kohoutek worked at observatories in Spain and Chile. He continued to study planetary nebulae. He officially retired in 2001, but he still does research at the Hamburg-Bergedorf Observatory. He has written 162 scientific papers.
His Discoveries
Luboš Kohoutek is most famous for finding many comets. Comets are like giant, icy snowballs that orbit the Sun. He discovered five comets, including:
- 75D/Kohoutek
- 76P/West–Kohoutek–Ikemura
- Comet Kohoutek C/1973 E1 (Kohoutek)
- C/1969 O1-A (Kohoutek)
- C/1973 D1 (Kohoutek)
He also found a supernova called SN 1973f. A supernova is a huge explosion that happens when a star dies.
Besides comets, he discovered 76 asteroids. Asteroids are small, rocky objects that orbit the Sun. One of his important asteroid discoveries was 1865 Cerberus, which is an Apollo asteroid. This type of asteroid has an orbit that can bring it close to Earth. Another asteroid, 1850 Kohoutek, was named after him to honor his work!
See also
In Spanish: Luboš Kohoutek para niños
