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Carl Friedrich Wilhelm Peters (16 April 1844 – 2 December 1894) was a German astronomer. His key work was on studies of chronometers and the effect of temperature and humidity on their accuracy.
Peters was born in Pulkowo where his father, the astronomer Christian August Friedrich Peters worked at the
Carl Friedrich Wilhelm Peters (16 April 1844 – 2 December 1894) was a German astronomer. His key work was on studies of chronometers and the effect of temperature and humidity on their accuracy.
Peters was born in Pulkowo where his father, the astronomer Christian August Friedrich Peters worked at the observatory
An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial, marine, or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geophysical, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed. His ...
. The family moved to Königsberg
Königsberg (, ) was the historic Prussian city that is now Kaliningrad, Russia. Königsberg was founded in 1255 on the site of the ancient Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teutonic Knights during the Northern Crusades, and was named ...
in 1849 and later to Altona. He studied astronomy and mathematics at the Universities of Berlin, Kiel and Munich before obtaining a doctorate from the University of Göttingen
The University of Göttingen, officially the Georg August University of Göttingen, (german: Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, known informally as Georgia Augusta) is a public research university in the city of Göttingen, Germany. Founded ...
with a thesis on the determination of the orbit of minor planet 87 Sylvia
Sylvia (minor planet designation: 87 Sylvia) is the one of the largest asteroids (approximately tied for 7th place, to within measurement uncertainties). It is the parent body of the Sylvia family and member of Cybele group located beyond the m ...
. He joined the Hamburg observatory in 1867, worked at Altona in 1868 and Kiel in 1873 before becoming director at the Königsberg Observatory in 1888 while also serving as a professor of astronomy at the University. He calculated the orbit of the double star 61 Cygni and for sometime was involved in geodetical determinations of longitude and examined the difference in longitude between Altona and Kiel. He also worked on the accuracy of chronometers and examined the effects of temperature and humidity on them. Between 1883 and 1888 he was in-charge of the naval chronometer observatory at Kiel. He edited revisions of Savich's ''Practical Astronomy'' and Müller-Pouillet's ''Cosmical Physics''.References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Peters, Carl Friedrich Wilhelm 1844 births 1894 deaths German astronomers