Italian Contributions to Planetary Astronomy: From the Discovery of Ceres to Pluto's Orbit

Ileana Chinnici is a research astronomer at the INAF/Palermo Astronomical Observatory, where she is in charge of research work in history of astronomy and museum activities. She graduated in Physics from the University of Palermo, Italy, in 1992 and subsequently undertook a one-year scholarship from Palermo University for the purpose of specialization, working on the archives of the “Carte du Ciel” at the Paris Observatory. A fellowship from the Italian National Research Council (C.N.R.) at Palermo Astronomical Observatory followed where she researched the development of astrophysics in Italy in the second half of the nineteenth century. In 1996, she took up the position of Curator at the Museum of Astronomy, Palermo Astronomical Observatory, working on nineteenth-century astronomical instruments. In the past, she has taught History of Astronomy at Palermo University. In 2004 she obtained the position of research astronomer. From 2010 to 2010, she was a member of the Italian Astronomical Society (SAIt) Council, and since 2003, a member of the International Astronomical Union (IAU) Commission 41 (History of Astronomy) “Archives” Working Group. She is an elected member of the Organizing Committee of IAU Commission 3 (History of Astronomy) for the period 2018 to 2021. She is author of books and papers mainly focused on history of astronomy and astrophysics in the 19th century. For her works, she has received prestigious awards (Osterbrock Book Prize 2021).