Dirk Klinkenberg


Dirk Klinkenberg was secretary of the Dutch government for 40 years. He was also known as a mathematician and amateur astronomer.
Jan de Munck, Dirk Klinkenberg, and Jean-Philippe de Cheseaux each independently discovered the Great Comet of 1744. Klinkenberg would later also discover comets C/1748 K1 and C/1762 K1.
Asteroid 10427 Klinkenberg, named after him, was discovered on September 24, 1960 by husband and wife team Cornelis Johannes van Houten and Ingrid van Houten-Groeneveld.