Johann Wilhelm Wagner (24 November 1681 in Heldburg/

Thüringen Thuringia (; german: Thüringen ), officially the Free State of Thuringia ( ), is a state of central Germany, covering , the sixth smallest of the sixteen German states. It has a population of about 2.1 million. Erfurt is the capital and larg ...

– 16 December 1745 in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

) 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 ...

Life and work

Between 1700 and 1703 he had a position as assistant to Georg Christoph Eimmart at his observatory in Nürnberg. In April 1704 Wagner began his studies 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 ...

. From 1706 to 1709 he was at the private observatory of Baron Bernhard Friedrich von Krosigk (1656–1714)

; in the following years followed various posts in

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

and

Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...

. From 1711 till either 1712 or 1713 he was a professor at a Ritterakademie. In 1716 Wagner became Observator and Member of the Preußischen Akademie der Wissenschaften. From 1720 he was Professor for Mathematics at the Gymnasium in

Hildburghausen Hildburghausen ( IPA adapted from: ) is a town in Thuringia in central Germany, capital of the district Hildburghausen. Geography It is situated in the Franconian part of Thuringia south of the Thuringian Forest, in the valley of the Werra riv ...

, until it was closed in 1727. On 16 December 1722 his son Johann Friedrich Wilhelm Wagner was born in Hildburghausen. In 1730 Wagner became Professor of Architecture at the Akademie der Künste in Berlin, and in 1735 Librarian of the Academy of Sciences. In 1740 after the death of

Christfried Kirch Christfried Kirch (24 December 1694, Guben – 9 March 1740, Berlin) was a German astronomer and almanac publisher. Life and work He was born in Guben, Germany the son of the astronomers Gottfried Kirch and Maria Margaretha Kirch. Christfrie ...

he was named as his successor as Director of

Berlin Observatory The Berlin Observatory (Berliner Sternwarte) is a German astronomical institution with a series of observatories and related organizations in and around the city of Berlin in Germany, starting from the 18th century. It has its origins in 1700 w ...

- a post which he held for the rest of his life. The

almanac An almanac (also spelled ''almanack'' and ''almanach'') is an annual publication listing a set of current information about one or multiple subjects. It includes information like weather forecasts, farmers' planting dates, tide tables, and othe ...

calculation at the Observatory am Observatorium took so much of his time that his son undertook some of his work in teaching at the Akademie der Künste.Akademie der Künste
Johann Wilhelm Wagner sen.
/ref> Wagner died unmarried in December 1745 from a heart attack.

External links

Johann Wilhelm Wagner, in: Astronomie in Nürnberg

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wagner, Johann Wilhelm 1681 births 1745 deaths 18th-century German astronomers Prussian Academy of Arts faculty