Gotha Observatory

Gotha Observatory
Gotha Observatory
Location Gotha, Germany
Coordinates
Established After 1787
Closed 1934

Gotha Observatory (Seeberg Observatory, Sternwarte Gotha or Seeberg-Sternwarte) was a German astronomical observatory located on Seeberg hill near Gotha, Thuringia, Germany.[1] Initially the observatory was dedicated to astrometry, geodetic and meteorological observation and tracking the time.

The minor planet 1346 Gotha was named after the city of Gotha in recognition of the observatory.[2]

Contents

History

Planning for the observatory began in 1787 by the court astronomer Baron Franz Xaver von Zach, with the financing of Ernest II, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg. It was based upon the Radcliffe Observatory in Oxford, England. The building was divided into five parts, with the central section holding a revolving dome. There were two wings to provide quarters for the staff.[3]

During Hansen's term, the observatory was dismantled and moved to a less exposed location in Gotha.[3] The observatory was closed in 1934.[4]

Instruments

Around 1800, the observatory became an international center for astronomy, being the most modern astronomical institute primarily for its instruments.[5] The instruments came from London, England, the standard place to acquire them in the 18th century.[5][6] These included an eighteen inch quadrant, a two foot transit instrument, three Hadley sextants, and achromat heliometer, a two foot achromat refractor, a Gregory reflector and many clocks.[5]

By the start of the nineteenth century improved instrumentation was acquired:[4] consisting of a theodolite, a different heliometer, new mounting, and three foot meridian circle. No spectroscopy or photography was performed at the observatory and the only astrophysical equipment of the observatory was a Zöllner photometer.[5]

Directors

The observatory directors were as follows:[7]

  • Franz Xaver von Zach, 1787–1802
  • Bernard von Lindenau, 1802 - ?
  • Johann Franz Encke, 1822–1825[8]
  • Peter Andreas Hansen 1825 - 1876[8]
  • Charles Nicolaus Adalbert Krueger 1876 - ?[9]
  • Hugo von Seeliger, 1881[10]

References

  1. ^ Howse, D. (November 1986). "The Greenwich List of Observatories - a World List of Astronomical Observatories Instruments and Clocks - 1670-1850". Journal of the History of Astronomy. 17 (51): 1. Bibcode 1986JHA....17A...1H.  – see page A29.
  2. ^ Schmadel, Lutz D. (2003). Dictionary of minor planet names (5 ed.). Springer. p. 109. ISBN 3540002383. 
  3. ^ a b Armitage, A. (1949). "Baron von Zach and his astronomical correspondence". Popular Astronomy 57: 326–332. Bibcode 1949PA.....57..326A. 
  4. ^ a b Wolfschmidt, Gudrun (1998). "Gotha - the instruments of the observatory". Acta Historica Astronomiae 3: 89–90. Bibcode 1998AcHA....3...89W. 
  5. ^ a b c d olfschmidt, Gudrun (2005). "Gotha - the instruments of the observatory". Acta Historica Astronomiae. http://www.astro.uni-bonn.de/~pbrosche/aa/acta/vol03/acta03_089.html. Retrieved 2009-05-16. 
  6. ^ Barton, William (1813). Memoirs of the Life of David Rittenhouse. E. Parker. pp. 130. ISBN 1146880421. 
  7. ^ Taylor, Marie Hansen; Kiliani, Lilian Bayard Taylor (1905). On two continents: memories of half a century. Doubleday, Page & company. p. 4. ISBN 0548987114. http://books.google.com/?id=IIwPAAAAMAAJ. Retrieved 2009-05-12. 
  8. ^ a b S., E. C. (1921). "Calendar of Scientific Pioneers". Nature (Nature Publishing Group) 107 (2682): 124. Bibcode 1921Natur.107..124E. doi:10.1038/107124a0. http://books.google.com/?id=pLMCAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA124&dq=%22Gotha+Observatory%22. Retrieved April 15, 2009. 
  9. ^ Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. Blackwell Scientific Publications. 1897. pp. 224. 
  10. ^ Macpherson, Hector (1905). Astronomers of to-day and their work. Gall & Inglis. pp. 180. 

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Ernest II, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg — (b. Gotha, 30 January 1745 d. Gotha, 20 April 1804), was ruler of the German principality of Saxe Gotha Altenburg.He was the third but second surviving son of Frederick III, Duke of Saxe Gotha Altenburg and Luise Dorothea of Saxe Meiningen. The… …   Wikipedia

  • Meanings of minor planet names: 1001–1500 — This is a list of the sources of minor planet names. Those meanings marked with an asterisk (*) are guesswork, and should be checked against Lutz D. Schmadel s Dictionary of Minor Planet Names or Paul Herget s The Names of the Minor Planets… …   Wikipedia

  • Цах, Франц Ксавер фон — В Википедии есть статьи о других людях с такой фамилией, см. Цах. Франц Ксавер фон Цах Franz Xaver von Zach …   Википедия

  • Hugo von Seeliger — (1849 1924), also known as Hugo Hans Ritter von Seeliger, was a German astronomer, often considered the most important astronomer of his day. He was born in Austria, completed high school in Teschen in 1867, andstudied at the Universities of… …   Wikipedia

  • Johann Karl Burckhardt — (April 30, 1773 – June 22, 1825) was a German born astronomer and mathematician who later became a naturalized French citizen. BiographyBurckhardt was born in Leipzig where he studied mathematics and astronomy. Later he became an assistant at the …   Wikipedia

  • Астрономическая обсерватория Львовского национального университета имени Ивана Франко — Оригинал названия Астрономічна обсерваторія є науково дослідним підрозділом Львівського національного університету імені Івана Франка Тип астрономическая обсерватория Код 067   …   Википедия

  • Auwers, Arthur von — ▪ German astronomer born Sept. 12, 1838, Göttingen, Hanover [Germany] died Jan. 24, 1915, Berlin, Ger.       German astronomer known for his star catalogs.       After receiving his Ph.D. in astronomy (1862) from the University of Königsberg,… …   Universalium

  • Астрономическая обсерватория Львовского университета — Астрономическая обсерватория Львовского национального университета имени Ивана Франко Оригинал названия Астрономічна обсерваторія є науково дослідним підрозділом Львівського національного університету імені Івана Франка Тип астрономическая… …   Википедия

  • Observatorium — Eine Sternwarte oder ein astronomisches Observatorium (von lat. observare = beobachten) ist ein Ort mit wissenschaftlichen Instrumenten zur Beobachtung des Sternhimmels, von Himmelskörpern oder von anderen Objekten im Weltraum. Die Beobachtungen… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Sonnenobservatorium — Eine Sternwarte oder ein astronomisches Observatorium (von lat. observare = beobachten) ist ein Ort mit wissenschaftlichen Instrumenten zur Beobachtung des Sternhimmels, von Himmelskörpern oder von anderen Objekten im Weltraum. Die Beobachtungen… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”