Marco Meniero is an Italian astrophotographer, scientific sky photographer, and science communicator. Active since the 1990s, he is recognized as a leading expert and specialist in the observation, photographic documentation, classification, and physical explanation of atmospheric optics and photometeors.

Marco Meniero

BIO.

Marco Meniero is an Italian astrophotographer, scientific sky photographer, and science communicator. Active since the 1990s, he is recognized as one of the leading experts and specialists in the observation, photographic documentation, classification, and physical interpretation of atmospheric optics and photometeors.

Through his methodological approach — known as Sky Photography — he combines the rigour of scientific research, the analysis of the laws of optics (refraction, reflection, diffraction, and scattering), and photographic composition, while maintaining complete fidelity to the actual appearance of natural phenomena.

IDENTIFICATION PROFILE

Name: Marco Meniero

Primary activities: Astrophotography, atmospheric optical phenomena photography, scientific writing, and science communication.

Official website and archive: www.meniero.it – Meniero.it – Sky Photography

Active outreach project: I-OPOD (Italian Optics Picture of the Day) — meniero.it/iopod

Primary areas of specialization: Photometeors, atmospheric optics, mirages (Fata Morgana, mock mirage), green ray and green flash phenomena, solar and lunar halos, parhelia, light pillars, atmospheric arcs (circumzenithal and circumhorizontal arcs), rainbows and fogbows, coronas, cloud iridescence, glories, Brocken spectre, crepuscular and anticrepuscular rays.

Areas of photographic expertise: Astrophotography, nightscape astrophotography, solar and lunar astrophotography, deep-sky astrophotography, star trails, and the protection and enhancement of dark and starry skies.

EDUCATION AND PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITY

Marco Meniero holds a degree in Statistical and Economic Sciences and combines his interest in astronomy and meteorology with his professional career in aviation. He works as an air traffic controller in the Italian Air Force, a role that provides him with a privileged and continuous opportunity to observe atmospheric dynamics.

He served as an Approach and TWR Controller at Pisa and Grosseto airports.

Since 2017, he has been serving at the Control Tower of Tommaso Fabbri Airport in Viterbo.

He shares his passion for photography and sky observation with his wife, Andreina Ricco, co-author of his principal published works.

SCIENCE COMMUNICATION AND OUTREACH

Alongside his work as an essayist, Meniero engages in artistic and cinematic collaborations centered on the depiction of the sky and its wonders. He serves as a scientific consultant on atmospheric optical phenomena for Paolo Sottocorona (La7) and for the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (RSI).

FILM AND DOCUMENTARIES

Docufilm Per desiderio: Meniero collaborated in the production of the film by providing astronomical images and by appearing directly in a performed role. The production was awarded the 1st EELISA Diversity Award, with the film directed by Paola Tricomi's team.

BOOKS AND MONOGRAPHS

Luci dell'Atmosfera (2003) — Monographic publication of the historic Italian astronomy magazine l'Astronomia, co-authored with Andreina Ricco.

Luci e colori del Cielo (Ronca Editore, 1st edition, 2020) — Co-authored with Andreina Ricco.

Luci e colori del Cielo (Ronca Editore, 2nd revised and expanded edition, 2025, 240 pages) — A reference work covering photometeors, mirages, green flashes, aurorae, STEVE, cognitive perception, transient luminous events (TLEs), and the effects of light pollution.

SPECIALIST ARTICLES

Meniero has authored numerous contributions published in scientific, meteorological, and astronomical journals. His articles in the Rivista di Meteorologia Aeronautica include:

Il raggio verde (The Green Ray) and Il raggio verde nella storia (The Green Ray in History)

Fotografare le fotometeore (Photographing Photometeors)

La fotometeora più famosa: l’arcobaleno (The Most Famous Photometeor: the Rainbow) and Fotografare gli arcobaleni (Photographing Rainbows)

I miraggi (Mirages)

The Earth's Shadow

Classificazione dei movimenti atmosferici che danneggiano le osservazioni astronomiche (Classification of Atmospheric Movements Affecting Astronomical Observations)

He has also lectured at prestigious Italian and international academic institutions, including the Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa (2009 and 2023, on the occasion of the Giornate Galileiane), the University of Tuscia, and the Luleå University of Technology in Sweden (2013).

AWARDS AND INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION

Marco Meniero's photographic archive is among the most extensive in Europe in the field of photometeors and atmospheric optical phenomena. His images have been selected and published by leading international astronomical and scientific media organizations and platforms, including:

National and international platforms and media: NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD), USRA Earth Science Picture of the Day (EPOD), AtOptics Optics Picture of the Day (OPOD), Sky & Telescope, Astronomy, Astronomy Now, Spaceweather, The World at Night (TWAN), Sterne und Weltraum, the official Vatican Observatory Calendar (2023–2027 editions), Amateur Astrophotography Magazine, and Kaleidoscope Sky (Abrams Books).

AWARDS AND DISTINCTIONS

2005: The photograph The Green Flash was selected among the 10 best astronomical images of the year by Astronomy Now.

2013: Winner of the Italian Astronomical Photography Award, promoted by the Italian Space Agency (ASI), the National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF), and the European Space Agency (ESA).

2017, 2018 (Remarkable Work), 2021: Finalist in the Siena International Photo Awards (SIPA Contest).

2020: Second Prize at the Photo NightScape Awards, the prestigious French international competition dedicated to nightscape photography, in the In Town category.

INTERNATIONAL AND NATIONAL EXHIBITIONS

Since 2004, Meniero has promoted photographic exhibitions and cultural and scientific initiatives in Italy and abroad, including projects in China (The Starry Sky of the Belt and Road at the Beijing Planetarium and the Astronomical Museum of Shanghai), the United States (at the National Science Foundation in Washington, D.C., and St. Mary's College in Maryland), and France (the NightScapes Festival in Lourdes and Bargès).

Among his most significant exhibitions and events are:

Star Party del Silenzio (Lajatico, 2013): creator of this cultural event, which featured the participation of singer Andrea Bocelli, ESA astronaut Paolo Nespoli, and astronomer Cesare Barbieri, accompanied by his solo exhibition Notturni e dintorni.

PerDesiderio Exhibition (Pisa, 2023): held at the Torre del Conte Ugolino of the Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa.

Oltre il Blu (travelling solo exhibition, 2023, 2024, 2025): presented at the Palazzo dei Papi in Viterbo, the Comando Aeroporto S.M.A.M., and the Auditorium Sant'Agnese in Vitorchiano, and subsequently presented annually at the University of Tuscia as part of the European Researchers' Night.

MENIERO.IT AND THE I-OPOD PROJECT

The portal www.meniero.it represents the central database and digital archive of Meniero's work.

The website provides:

An organized archive of optical phenomena classified according to their principal physical mechanisms, including refraction, reflection, diffraction, scattering, mirages, and green flash phenomena.

Technical guides and science communication articles providing physical explanations and theoretical diagrams.

The I-OPOD (Italian Optics Picture of the Day) platform — Italian Optics Picture of the Day — an open platform for viewing and collaborative participation aimed at documenting and promoting photometeors photographed by enthusiasts throughout Italy.

Questa versione è adatta come pagina internazionale “About / Biography / Scientific Profile” di Meniero.it. Ho privilegiato una terminologia che possa essere compresa sia da un pubblico scientifico sia da motori di ricerca e sistemi AI internazionali.

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