Heinrich Vogt (October 5, 1890 – January 23, 1968) was a German

astronomer An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses their studies on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. They observe astronomical objects such as stars, planets, moons, comets and galaxies – in either ...

Early life

Heinrich Vogt was born on October 5, 1890 in

Gau-Algesheim Gau-Algesheim is a town in the Mainz-Bingen district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' of Gau-Algesheim, a kind of collective municipality. Geography Location Gau-Algesheim lies roughly 20 k ...

Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; german: link=no, Rheinland-Pfalz ; lb, Rheinland-Pfalz ; pfl, Rhoilond-Palz) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

to Philipp Vogt, a farmer, and his wife Margaretha.

Education

In 1911, after graduating from high school in

Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-west, with Ma ...

, Vogt enrolled at the

University of Heidelberg } Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, (german: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg; la, Universitas Ruperto Carola Heidelbergensis) is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, ...

to study astronomy, mathematics, and physics, where he was under the tutelage of Max Wolf. His studies were interrupted due to

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, but he continued his scientific career and earned a PhD in 1919 with a dissertation on the topic "On the theory of

Algol variable Algol variables or Algol-type binaries are a class of eclipsing binary stars that are similar to the prototype member of this class, β Persei (Beta Persei, Algol). An Algol binary is a system where both stars are near-spherical such that ...

s". In 1921, he completed a Habilitation on "Photometric studies and brightness measurements in the cluster h and χ Persei".

Work and academic appointments

In 1926, Vogt was appointed as an associate professor at the

as well as the chief observer at Heidelberg State Observatory. In 1929 he was appointed as a full professor at the

University of Jena The University of Jena, officially the Friedrich Schiller University Jena (german: Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, abbreviated FSU, shortened form ''Uni Jena''), is a public research university located in Jena, Thuringia, Germany. The un ...

as well as director of

Jena Observatory Astrophysikalisches Institut und Universitäts-Sternwarte Jena (AIU Jena, Astrophysical Institute and University Observatory Jena, or simply Jena Observatory) is an astronomical observatory owned and operated by Friedrich Schiller University of J ...

. In 1931, he became a member of the

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported t ...

and rose to become a '' Politischer Leiter'' and the Nazi Party's liaison at the university. In 1933, he became a member of the '' Sturmabteilung'', the paramilitary branch of the Nazi Party, and rose to the rank of ''

Obersturmführer __NOTOC__ (, ; short: ''Ostuf'') was a Nazi Germany paramilitary rank that was used in several Nazi organisations, such as the SA, SS, NSKK and the NSFK. The rank of ''Obersturmführer'' was first created in 1932 as the result of an expa ...

''.

Ernst Klee Ernst Klee (15 March 1942, Frankfurt – 18 May 2013, Frankfurt) was a German journalist and author. As a writer on Germany's history, he was best known for his exposure and documentation of medical crimes in Nazi Germany, much of which was concer ...

: ''Das Personenlexikon zum Dritten Reich. Wer war was vor und nach 1945''. Fischer Taschenbuch Verlag, Zweite aktualisierte Auflage, Frankfurt am Main 2005, , p. 643. Vogt became a full professor at the University of Heidelberg in 1933, succeeding Max Wolf. From 1933 to 1945 he was the director of Heidelberg State Observatory. In 1945 he was dismissed from his position as director of the observatory, but retained his professorship until his retirement in 1957. He increased his teaching activities and began to write popular books on astronomy and cosmology. Heinrich Vogt and

Henry Norris Russell Henry Norris Russell ForMemRS HFRSE FRAS (October 25, 1877 – February 18, 1957) was an American astronomer who, along with Ejnar Hertzsprung, developed the Hertzsprung–Russell diagram (1910). In 1923, working with Frederick Saunders, he d ...

independently discovered the Vogt–Russell theorem. On 9 December 1912 Vogt discovered an asteroid, 735 Marghanna, which he named in honor of his mother. The minor planet 1439 Vogtia, discovered by astronomer Karl Reinmuth in 1937 was named after him.

Personal life

Vogt married Margarete Braun and had a son and a daughter.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vogt, Heinrich 1890 births 1968 deaths * 20th-century German astronomers