Vol. 6, 1920 INTERNATIONAL ASTRONOMICAL UNION 
375 
The Committee is of the opinion that much unnecessary effort and 
dupHcation could be avoided and a thorough foundation for future re- 
searches along the lines indicated above could be furnished by first of all 
bringing together all published material in a bibliography which would 
give in abstract form the results of past observations and investigations. 
Observations of positions, photometric observations, etc., would be listed 
merely by dates of observation and references. At the present time there 
is completely lacking a reference work for asteroids such as Galle's Comet 
List. The latter also requires to be brought up to date; several fragmen- 
tary continuations of Galle's list are in existence. Bauschinger's Sta- 
tistik der Klleinen Planeten gives merely statistical information based on 
adopted asteroid orbits, without giving a complete history of the work 
done on the individual asteroids, including references to the dates of ob- 
servations. 
The research requirements along the various lines indicated above can- 
not be fully stated until a complete history and bibliography for comets 
and asteroids are available. Galle's list has been of incomparable value 
in this direction, particularly in the identification of comets. After the 
history and bibliography have been completed the research requirements 
along the various lines indicated above should be published. 
Arrangements should be made by international cooperation for the pub- ■ 
lication of opposition ephemerides. 
After the plans have been outlined in the rough and published, a census 
should be made of observatories and astronomers, for the purpose of 
securing volunteers for specific work of observation or research. The 
results of this census should be published, so that every astronomer will 
know to whom to turn for information of any kind regarding asteroids, 
and so as to avoid the present useless duplications, particularly of observa- 
tion. 
The general direction of these plans should be in charge of an international 
committee composed of the chairmen of the Committees on Comets and 
Asteroids of the various national sections. 
As a first step toward the realization of the foregoing plans it is neces- 
sary to adopt a distinct classification for comets and asteroids. An 
example for a suitable asteroid classification is attached as Appendix A. 
This classification is based on the present state of observation and com- 
putation and on the scientific importance of the object. It at once en- 
ables the astronomer interested in a particular kind of research to select 
the object and the material needed. 
The present designation of asteroids might be supplemented by using 
the letters a, h, c, etc., for easy recognition of the condition of the avail- 
able observational material and of its orbit theory, an asterisk being added 
to designate those of scientific importance. These asteroids might be 
given a description to indicate the nature of their scientific importance, 
