Named for the German mathematician and astronomer Johannes Regiomontanus (1436–1476), originally called J. Müller, one of the most famous scholars of his time and trailblazer of the new world view. He improved mathematical methods and created modern trigonometry. He was sure that calculations of the orbits of celestial bodies could be improved essentially by new, more exact systematic observations. So in 1472 he founded the first German observatory in Nürnberg. His plan was interrupted by his early death. Calendars and ephemeris he calculated and published helped the sailors Columbus, da Gama and Vespucci. (M 33795) _ _.