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Stellar Parallax Method
Stellar parallax is the apparent shift of position (''parallax'') of any nearby star (or other object) against the background of distant stars. By extension, it is a method for determining the distance to the star through trigonometry, the stellar parallax method. Created by the different orbital positions of Earth, the extremely small observed shift is largest at time intervals of about six months, when Earth arrives at opposite sides of the Sun in its orbit, giving a baseline (the shortest side of the triangle made by a star to be observed and two positions of Earth) distance of about two astronomical units between observations. The parallax itself is considered to be half of this maximum, about equivalent to the observational shift that would occur due to the different positions of Earth and the Sun, a baseline of one astronomical unit (AU). Stellar parallax is so difficult to detect that its existence was the subject of much debate in astronomy for hundreds of years. Thomas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
James Bradley
James Bradley (September 1692 – 13 July 1762) was an English astronomer and priest who served as the third Astronomer Royal from 1742. He is best known for two fundamental discoveries in astronomy, the aberration of light (1725–1728), and the nutation of the Earth's axis (1728–1748). These two discoveries were called "the most brilliant and useful of the century" by Jean Baptiste Joseph Delambre, historian of astronomy, mathematical astronomer and director of the Paris Observatory. In his ''History of astronomy in the 18th century'' (1821), Delambre stated:"It is to these two discoveries by Bradley that we owe the exactness of modern astronomy. ... This double service assures to their discoverer the most distinguished place (after Hipparchus and Kepler) above the greatest astronomers of all ages and all countries." Biography Bradley was born at Sherborne, near Cheltenham in Gloucestershire, to William Bradley and Jane Pound in September 1692. His nephew John wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kuffner Observatory
The Kuffner observatory is one of two telescope-equipped public astronomy, astronomical public observatory, observatories situated in Austria's capital, Vienna. It is situated in the West of the city's Ottakring district, on the slope of the Gallitzinberg at 302 m altitude. Originally a private research institution, it was converted into an educational astronomy facility after World War II as buildings and city lights had encroached to a degree that severely hampered scientific nightsky observations. Today the main tasks of the observatory consist in public education on astronomy, operating and preserving the historical equipment, and minor projects in scientific astronomy. The observatory was noted for its work on photometry, conducted by astronomer Karl Schwarzschild, star catalogs, and the determining of distances to other stars. The observatory has several astronomical instruments of historical interest, including a noted heliometer and large meridian circle, and also a vertica ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Astronomische Nachrichten
''Astronomische Nachrichten'' (''Astronomical Notes''), one of the first international journals in the field of astronomy, was established in 1821 by the German astronomer Heinrich Christian Schumacher. It claims to be the oldest astronomical journal in the world that is still being published. The publication today specializes in articles on solar physics, extragalactic astronomy, cosmology, geophysics, and instrumentation for these fields. All articles are subject to peer review. Early history The journal was founded in 1821 by Heinrich Christian Schumacher,''Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific'', page 60, v.7 (1895) under the patronage of Christian VIII of Denmark, and quickly became the world's leading professional publication for the field of astronomy. Schumacher edited the journal at the Altona Observatory, then under the administration of Denmark, later part of Prussia, and today part of the German city of Hamburg. Schumacher edited the first 31 issu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heliometer
A heliometer (from Greek ἥλιος ''hḗlios'' "sun" and ''measure'') is an instrument originally designed for measuring the variation of the Sun's diameter at different seasons of the year, but applied now to the modern form of the instrument which is capable of much wider use. Description The basic concept is to introduce a split element into a telescope's optical path so as to produce a double image. If one element is moved using a screw micrometer, precise angle measurements can be made. The simplest arrangement is to split the object lens in half, with one half fixed and the other attached to the micrometer screw and slid along the cut diameter. To measure the diameter of the Sun, for example, the micrometer is first adjusted so that the two images of the solar disk coincide (the "zero" position where the split elements form essentially a single element). The micrometer is then adjusted so that diametrically opposite sides of the two images of the solar disk just touc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Koenigsberg Observatory
Koenigsberg Observatory (; obs. code: 058) was an astronomical observatory and research facility which was attached to the Albertina University in Königsberg, what is now Kaliningrad, Russia. The observatory was destroyed by Royal Air Force bombs in August 1944 during the Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo .... Only the reduit (interior of the building) remained from the bastion. The building is a semicircular two-storey building with a brick vault. Nowadays, the building is considered a regional architectural monument. Description It was founded in 1810 and started working in 1813. Well-known astronomers who used the observatory included Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel, Friedrich Wilhelm Argelander, Arthur Auwers and Hermann Struve. In 1838, th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
University Of Tartu Old Observatory
University of Tartu Old Observatory or Tartu Old Observatory () is an observatory in Tartu, Estonia. Tartu Observatory was an active observatory from 1810 to 1964. The building now serves as a museum and belongs to the University of Tartu Museum. History Construction of the observatory started in 1808. While it was completed in 1810, setting up the necessary instruments took a few years more. The last of them was the Fraunhofer ''Great Dorpat Refractor'', that was the largest refracting telescope at the time and was constructed in 1824. It has been titled as "the first modern, achromatic, refracting telescope". Since 1813, Friedrich Georg Wilhelm von Struve worked there and in 1820 he became a professor and director of the observatory. He studied double stars and was the first to measure the exact distance to a star, Vega. He also created the Struve Geodetic Arc, that is now enlisted as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Tartu Old Observatory was the first measurement point of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Ocean; to the north by the neighbouring countries of Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe; to the east and northeast by Mozambique and Eswatini; and it encloses Lesotho. Covering an area of , the country has Demographics of South Africa, a population of over 64 million people. Pretoria is the administrative capital, while Cape Town, as the seat of Parliament of South Africa, Parliament, is the legislative capital, and Bloemfontein is regarded as the judicial capital. The largest, most populous city is Johannesburg, followed by Cape Town and Durban. Cradle of Humankind, Archaeological findings suggest that various hominid species existed in South Africa about 2.5 million years ago, and modern humans inhabited the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cape Town
Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest city by population, after Johannesburg, and the largest city in the Western Cape. The city is part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality (South Africa), metropolitan municipality. The city is known for Port of Cape Town, its harbour, its natural setting in the Cape Floristic Region, and for landmarks such as Table Mountain and Cape Point. In 2014, Cape Town was named the best place in the world to visit by ''The New York Times'', and was similarly ranked number one by ''The Daily Telegraph'' in both 2016 and 2023. Located on the shore of Table Bay, the City Bowl area of Cape Town, which contains its Cape Town CBD, central business district (CBD), is History of Cape Town, the oldest urban area in the Western Cape, with a signi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Giuseppe Calandrelli
Giuseppe Calandrelli (22 May 1749 – 24 December 1827) was an Italian priest, astronomer and mathematician. He founded the first astronomical observatory in the Collegio Romano in 1787. An uncle of the astronomer Ignazio Calandrelli, he was among the first to observe the parallax of stars, estimate the masses of comets, the potential size of their atmosphere, and to examine the use of barometers to mathematically estimate altitudes. Biography Calandrelli was born at Zagarolo, near Rome, son of Tommasso and Maria Fortini. He studied philosophy and theology at Vatican and Albano and was ordained priest in 1768 under Cardinal Flavio Chigi. He taught at the Magliano Sabina seminary from 1769. In 1773 the Society of Jesus was suppressed by Pope Clement XIV and Calandrelli was posted as a professor of mathematics at the Collegio Romano. With support of Cardinal Francesco Saverio de Zelada (1717–1801) who trained him at his own private observatory, he tried to set up an observat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bamberg Heliometer No 3253
Bamberg (, , ; East Franconian: ''Bambärch'') is a town in Upper Franconia district in Bavaria, Germany, on the river Regnitz close to its confluence with the river Main. Bamberg had 79,000 inhabitants in 2022. The town dates back to the 9th century, when its name was derived from the nearby ' castle. Cited as one of Germany's most beautiful towns, with medieval streets and buildings, the old town of Bamberg with around 2,400 timber houses has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1993. From the 10th century onwards, Bamberg became a key link with the Western Slavic peoples, notably those of Poland and Pomerania. It experienced a period of great prosperity from the 12th century onwards, during which time it was briefly the centre of the Holy Roman Empire. Emperor Henry II was buried in the old town, alongside his wife Kunigunde. The town's architecture from this period strongly influenced that in Northern Germany and Hungary. From the middle of the 13th century onwards, th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
