Leonardo Ximenes

Leonardo Ximenes (27 December 1716 – 4 May 1786) was a famous Italian mathematician, engineer, astronomer and geographer from Sicily.

After having attended a Jesuit school, he became a mathematician, a hydraulic and civil engineer, and was an eminently respected astronomer in his day. The astronomical observatory, Osservatorio Ximeniano, is named after him in recognition of his services to the field.