Southeast Asia Information Port News (www.dnyxxg.com) – On February 4th, reporters learned from the Lijiang Astronomical Society that its joint "Starry Sky Bridge Celestial Object Search Project" with the Chiayi Astronomical Society of Taiwan Province has achieved a significant result – a new main-belt asteroid has been discovered at the Lijiang Twin Astronomical Manor and has received official certification from the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center (IAU MPC), with the provisional designation 2025WO11. This is the first asteroid in Yunnan Province to be discovered and internationally certified by an amateur telescope, achieving a breakthrough for Yunnan's amateur astronomical observations in the field of international asteroid discovery.
This discovery relies on a collaborative platform built over many years by astronomical forces in Yunnan and Taiwan. The two sides jointly built and operate the Twin Astronomical Manor (IAU observatory designation O42) at an altitude of 3170 meters in Tai'an Township, Yulong Naxi Autonomous County. After continuous debugging, the station has the automated search capability for various celestial objects, including supernovae, asteroids, and comets. It is also the first high-altitude professional-grade observatory in Southwest China primarily operated by an amateur astronomical group, laying a solid foundation for this new discovery. According to the head of the Gemini Observatory, in November 2025, the joint research team detected a faint, unknown moving target while analyzing observational data. Subsequent continuous tracking and precise orbit calculations over several nights confirmed it to be an unrecorded main-belt asteroid orbiting between Mars and Jupiter, with a diameter of approximately 405 meters. After verification by the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center, the Gemini Observatory was officially recognized as the first discoverer of this asteroid globally.
This achievement is a vivid example of the collaborative scientific exchange between Yunnan and Taiwan. During the collaboration, the Lijiang team overcame the challenges of the high-altitude environment, ensuring the long-term stable operation of the observation equipment; the Chiayi team significantly improved the efficiency of celestial object search by remotely controlling and optimizing algorithms via the cloud. This "on-site operation and maintenance + remote intelligent control" model effectively integrated the strengths of both sides.
According to international practice, after several return observations confirming its orbit, asteroid 2025WO11 will be given a permanent designation, at which point the discovering team will have the right to name it. Currently, astronomical teams from Yunnan and Taiwan have planned further joint observations and intend to conduct scientific explorations such as near-Earth object monitoring, continuously leveraging private resources to support the development of astronomical scientific research. (End)
