Črni Vrh Observatory


The Črni Vrh Observatory is an astronomical observatory located in western Slovenia, close to the settlement of Črni Vrh, near the town of Idrija. The current observatory was built in 1985 and stands at an elevation of. Much of the construction was done by volunteers.
Regular astronomical observations started in 1975, at a small observatory that was equipped with home-made instruments and was set up 4 km from the present site. At that time, the first images of Comet West were taken. The site is well above the inversion border much of winter, which allows undisturbed observations on many successive clear nights.
The observatory runs a after its Slovene acronym. Since March 2003, the program has been operated on a new equipped with a Finger Lake 1k × 1k CCD detector. Telescope project funding has been covered in part by the Planetary Society Shoemaker Grant 2000 and 2010. The recent grant was for the purchase of a deep-cooling Apogee Alta U9000 CCD camera that will increase sensitivity of the imaging system, enabling discoveries of even fainter objects. The new camera has been in operation since October 2011.
Members of the Department of Physics, Astronomical Observatory, of the University of Ljubljana, used the site for observations with their S-C telescope during the period 1994–2009.
On 18 August 2008, the amateur astronomer Stanislav Matičič discovered the comet C/2008 Q1 , the first comet discovered in this observatory and in Slovenia. On 16 April 2010, the student Jan Vales discovered the periodic comet designated P/2010 H2 in a strong outburst. The Catalina Sky Survey researchers scanned the same region of the sky only 15 hours earlier and missed it.

Telescopes

The Minor Planet Center credits a large number of minor planet discoveries directly to the observatory.

List of discovered minor planets

9674 Slovenija23 August 1998
15071 Hallerstein24 January 1999
12 October 1999
7 December 1999
1 August 2000
11 September 2000
19612 Noordung17 July 1999
19633 Rusjan13 September 1999
26 August 2000
14 September 1999
7 December 1999
1 August 2000
7 December 1999
4 January 2000
24 January 1999
19 January 1999
24 May 2000
19 January 1999
24 January 1999
15 May 2000
26 May 2000
1 June 2000
24 May 2000
27 July 2000
24 August 2000

14 February 2000
28 February 2000
15 February 2001
16 February 2001
17 February 2001
24 January 1999
15 February 2001
16 February 2001
19 January 1999
6 October 1999
29 April 2001
15 May 2000
29 July 2000
30 July 2000
17 February 2001
12 September 1999
1 June 2000
5 June 2000
27 July 2000
2 June 2000
1 September 2000
9 September 2000
10 September 2000
24 October 2000
29 April 2001

27 December 2003
22 August 1999
11 October 1999
1 June 2000
27 July 2000
28 July 2000
24 August 2000
25 August 2000
8 September 2000
25 September 2000
10 October 1999
26 May 2000
9 September 2000
11 October 1999
25 August 2000
29 August 2000
25 September 2000
24 October 2000
12 February 2001
17 February 2001
23 March 2001
14 April 2001
8 October 1999
12 October 1999
5 January 2000

16 December 2003
1 January 2005
27 May 2000
2 June 2000
7 July 2000
1 August 2000
24 August 2000
26 September 2000
26 September 2000
26 September 2000
28 September 2000
16 February 2001
4 February 2002
13 March 2002
29 August 2000
26 September 2000
15 February 2001
18 September 2003
20 September 2003
16 October 2003
16 December 2003
16 February 2001
16 February 2001
16 December 2003
13 September 2005

3 August 2003
21 August 2003
21 August 2003
3 September 2003
16 October 2003
24 December 2003
21 April 2004
1 April 2005
16 February 2001
5 August 2007
22 December 2006
16 February 2001
17 October 2003
16 February 2001
9 January 2002
17 December 2003
15 March 2004
25 September 2000
17 February 2001
1 October 2002
1 October 2002
9 February 2004
7 October 1999
7 October 1999
20 February 2001

15 October 2003
4 August 2005
14 February 2007
23 October 2000
16 October 2003
20 September 2003
17 August 2004
4 April 2005
29 July 2008
10 August 2008
8 February 2002
20 September 2003
4 April 2006
14 July 2007
22 September 2007
23 October 2008
8 September 2000
22 September 2007
22 September 2007
13 February 2010
20 September 2003
23 August 2006
9 April 2007
7 October 2007
23 August 2003

16 February 2001
12 April 2007
6 August 2007
20 September 2003
11 September 2007
27 November 2008
26 September 2003
29 March 2006
22 December 2006
13 May 2007
23 July 2007
8 October 2007
25 February 2009
19 July 2009
26 August 2003
15 March 2004
4 April 2006
23 August 2006
24 July 2007
28 October 2000
11 March 2002
20 August 2003
1 September 2006
12 April 2007
16 August 2007

13 March 2010
7 March 2010
8 April 2010
26 August 2003
14 December 2003
22 September 2007
30 March 2008
8 April 2010
31 August 2006
24 August 2009
20 September 2006
13 February 2009
15 August 2009
15 August 2009
22 August 2003
24 August 2003
16 October 2003
29 July 2008
20 August 2009
21 September 2009
12 October 2010
17 September 2003
17 December 2003
24 July 2009
23 October 2008

7 October 2007
17 April 2007
10 August 2008
26 August 2008
7 October 2007
10 February 2008
24 October 2008
19 January 2010
26 August 2008
26 August 2003
13 April 2007
18 July 2007
24 August 2008
25 April 2009
7 August 2010
15 April 2009
2 September 2010
1 August 2008
13 February 2007
15 August 2007
16 February 2007