Named in honor of Michael Gressmann, renowned astronomical optician of Falkensee, near Berlin. Scholar and successor to the famous Alfred Wilke {see planet  (4117)}, Gressmann has for the past 20 years manufactured numerous telescope optics both for amateur astronomers and for observatories and institutes. These high-quality products also contain special laser and infrared optics of Gressmann’s own design. Founder and leader of an East German working group on asteroids, he is also a distinguished popularizer of astronomy in his country. (M 16446) _ _.