Named in honor of Menotti Galli (b. 1922), a physicist at the University of Bologna. Galli's research activity began with the study of cosmic rays and meteorites and was subsequently extended to the physics of the sun and the heliosphere. He has studied sun-earth relationships, cosmogenic isotopes and radiocarbon in tree rings. He suggested searching for microparticles embedded in the resin of trees surviving the Tunguska explosion, and he participated in the 1991 expedition to collect the necessary wood samples, with the result that a group of elements was identified as possible constituents of the Tunguska body. Name suggested and citation provided by M. di Martino.