{{Short description|Japanese astronomer}} {{more citations needed|biography|date=January 2009}} {{Infobox scientist | honorific_prefix = | name = Minoru Honda | honorific_suffix = | native_name = 本田 実 | native_name_lang = ja | image = <!--(filename only, i.e. without "File:" prefix)--> | image_size = | image_upright = | alt = | caption = | birth_name = <!-- if different from "name" --> | birth_date = {{birth date |1913|02|26}} | birth_place = | death_date = {{death date and age |1990|08|26|1913|02|26}} | death_place = | death_cause = | resting_place = | resting_place_coordinates = <!--{{coord|LAT|LONG|type:landmark|display=inline,title}}--> | home_town = | other_names = | siglum = | pronounce = | citizenship = | fields = Astronomy | workplaces = Zodiacal Light Observatory | patrons = | education = | alma_mater = | thesis_title = <!--(or | thesis1_title = and | thesis2_title = )--> | thesis_url = <!--(or | thesis1_url = and | thesis2_url = )--> | thesis_year = <!--(or | thesis1_year = and | thesis2_year = )--> | doctoral_advisor = <!--(or | doctoral_advisors = )--> | academic_advisors = | doctoral_students = | notable_students = | known_for = Discovered twelve comets between 1940 and 1968 | influences = | influenced = | awards = | author_abbrev_bot = | author_abbrev_zoo = | spouse = <!--(or | spouses = )--> | partner = <!--(or | partners = )--> | children = | signature = <!--(filename only)--> | signature_alt = | website = <!--{{URL|www.example.com}}--> | footnotes = }}
{{Nihongo|'''Minoru Honda'''|本田 実|Honda Minoru|February 26, 1913 – August 26, 1990}} was a Japanese astronomer. Starting in 1937, Honda worked for Issei Yamamoto at the Zodiacal Light Observatory in Hiroshima.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers |last=Hockey |first=Thomas |year=2009 |publisher=Springer Publishing |isbn=978-0-387-31022-0 |accessdate=August 22, 2012 |url=http://www.springerreference.com/docs/html/chapterdbid/58647.html}}</ref>
He discovered twelve comets between 1940 and 1968, including the periodic comet 45P/Honda–Mrkos–Pajdušáková.
He discovered on FH Serpentis (Nova Serpentis 1970) on February 13, 1970 from Kurashiki, Japan.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.aavso.org/fh-ser-nova-serpentis-1970|title=FH Ser (Nova Serpentis 1970) | aavso}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|url=http://articles.adsabs.harvard.edu//full/1970PASP...82.1070B/0001070.000.html|bibcode = 1970PASP...82.1070B|title = Photoelectric Observations of Nova Serpentis 1970|last1 = Borra|first1 = Ermanno F.|last2 = Andersen|first2 = Per H.|journal = Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific|year = 1970|volume = 82|issue = 489|page = 1070|doi = 10.1086/129005| s2cid=121790086 |doi-access = free}}</ref>
He was the first to report the very bright V1500 Cygni (Nova Cygni 1975) at magnitude 3.0 on August 29, 1975; it peaked at 2.0, and many hundreds of independent discoveries were subsequently made by others.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://cbat.eps.harvard.edu/iauc/02800/02826.html#Item1 |title=The page you were looking for doesn't exist (404) |access-date=2004-07-14 |archive-date=2020-03-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200307010907/https://minorplanetcenter.net//iau/iauc/02800/02826.html#Item1 |url-status=live }}</ref>
The asteroid 3904 Honda is named after him, 8485 Satoru is named after his wife, and 11442 Seijin-Sanso is named after his astronomical observatory.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www8.plala.or.jp/seijin/|title = 星尋山荘}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Honda, Minoru}} Category:1913 births Category:1990 deaths Category:20th-century Japanese astronomers Category:Discoverers of comets Category:Scientists from Tottori Prefecture
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