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Otto Wilhelm von Struve

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Not to be confused with his grandsonOtto Struve(1897–1963).
Otto Wilhelm von Struve

Otto Wilhelm von Struve(May 7, 1819 (Julian calendar:April 25) – April 14, 1905) was aRussianastronomerofBaltic Germanorigins. InRussian,his name is normally given asOtto Vasil'evich Struve(Отто Васильевич Струве). He headed thePulkovo Observatorybetween 1862 and 1889 and was a leading member of theRussian Academy of Sciences.

Early years

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Struve was born in 1819 inDorpat (Tartu),then Russian Empire, as the third son out of eighteen sons and daughters of Friedrich Georg Wilhelm von Struve and Emilie Wall (1796–1834). He graduated from a Dorpat gymnasium at the age of 15 and was one year too young by the university rules. Nevertheless, he was admitted to theImperial University of Dorpatas a listener and completed the program by the age of 20. While studying, he was assisting his father at theDorpat Observatory.In 1839, he graduated from the university and moved to the newly opened Pulkovo Observatory, where he was immediately appointed as assistant of the director (his father). For his initial observations, he was given the degree of Master of Astronomy by theUniversity of St. Petersburgin 1841. In 1842, he visitedLipetskfor observations of thesolar eclipseand in 1843 defended his PhD.[1][2][3][4]In 1843 Otto formally became a Russian subject.[5]

Scientific work

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Pulkovo Observatory in 1839.

During 1843 and 1844, Struve participated inlongitudemeasurements betweenAltona,Greenwichand Pulkovo, which were based on large displacement of chronometers over the Earth surface. This newly developed method was adopted in Russia, and from 1844, longitude was measured starting from Pulkovo Observatory instead of Tartu Observatory.

Struve dedicated much of 1844 to studying theSun.He deduced its apex coordinates and linear velocity as 7.3 km/s. Although this was significantly smaller than the accurate value of 19.5 km/s measured in 1901, Struve was correct in that the velocity of the Sun was smaller than that of stars.[1][2][6][7]

In 1865 Struve discoveredNGC 8,adouble starin the constellation Pegasus, and thespiral galaxyNGC 9in the constellation Andromeda. He explored theconstellation of Cassiopeia,findingdouble stars.He labeled them with his initials in theGreek alphabet,OΣ in his first catalogue,[8]and OΣΣ in his appendix.[9]

Struve continued his father's work in several directions. In particular, they compiledcatalogues of stellar coordinates,including several thousandsdouble starsobserved with a 15-inch refractor. Between 1816 and 1852, the observatory completed survey triangulation measurements of theangular arc(namedStruve Geodetic Arc). The measurements extended through over 2,820 km, fromHammerfestinNorwayto the Staraya Nekrasovka village by theBlack Sea,and aimed to establish theexact size and shapeof theEarth.

In 1851, while observing a solar eclipse, Struve concluded that thesolar coronaandprotuberancesare physically connected with the Sun rather than being simply an optical effect, as most astronomers then believed. Later in 1860 he suggested a close connection between solar protuberances and flares.[10]he also observedsatellitesofUranus(ArielandUmbriel,in 1851) and ofNeptune.He measured the rings ofSaturnand discovered (in parallel with other researchers) the dark innerring of Saturn.In 1861, in his report to the Academy of Sciences, he supported and developed the ideas ofWilliam Herschelthat stars are formed from thediffuse matter.[6][11]In 1872, he organized assistance with equipment to the newly opened observatory inTashkent– a more southerly location offering clear skies for observations. In 1874, he prepared several expeditions to monitor the transit ofVenusacross the solar disk in eastern Asia, Caucasus, Persia and Egypt. In 1887, he sent several groups within Russia to observe the solar eclipse. In some of those expeditions, he took part personally.[4]In 1885, a 30-inchrefracting telescopewas installed at Pulkovo, at the time the largest in the world (seegreat refractor).

Administration

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1886 portrait of Struve byIvan Kramskoi.

Around 1845, von Struve's father withdrew from most management activities at the Pulkovo Observatory and focused on individual research. From then on, most administrative duties fell on von Struve, especially in 1858 when his father was gravely ill. With his father's retirement in 1862, Otto officially became director and kept that position for 27 years until 1889. In the mid-1860s, his own health deteriorated as well, to the point that neither he nor his physician hoped for recovery. However, instead of retiring, von Struve spent a full winter on leave in Italy and managed to restore his health.[4][12]

Struve remained a top authority at the Russian Academy and his instructions regarding staff appointments were generally followed without question. The first refusal, in 1887, disappointed Struve so much that he applied for resignation. However, Tsar Alexander III requested him to remain in his posts until the 50th anniversary of the Pulkovo Observatory in 1889.[4]

For most of those years, the working language of the Pulkovo Observatory was German, as the staff members were largely foreigners. Struve had only limited command of Russian, although he used it whenever possible.[4]

Visit to the United States

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Otto was the first scientist of the Struve family to visit United States (in 1879: New York, Chicago and San Francisco). The visit served several purposes, including ordering theAlvan Clark & Sonsoptics for the new 30-inch telescope in Pulkovo,[13]and it was a part of long-term Russia-US astronomy partnership during the 19th century. Within that collaboration, many American astronomers stayed at Pulkovo for observations and exchanged data with Russian scientists by mail. By the initiative of Struve, two US astronomers,Simon NewcombandAsaph Hallwere appointed as Foreign Members of the Russian Academy of Sciences.[2]

Personal life and late years

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Struve (second left) with his family.Hermann von Struveis third from the right.

Struve was married twice. His first wife was a daughter of German emigrants Emilie Dyrssen (1823–1868). They had four sons and two daughters who reached mature age. A few years after her death, Struve married Emma Jankowsky (1839–1902) and had another daughter with her. Two of his younger sons,Hermann StruveandLudwig Struve,continued the traditions of the Struve family and became distinguished astronomers. Of the older sons, one served at the Ministry of Finances and another was geologist. After retirement in 1889, Otto Wilhelm Struve stayed mostly in St. Petersburg, summarizing his observations and keeping correspondence with colleagues. He occasionally visited Switzerland and Italy. During his 1895 trip to Germany, he fell ill to the point of abandoning any further travel. He stayed in Germany and died in 1905 inKarlsruhe.[4]

Awards and honors

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Struve won theGold Medal of the Royal Astronomical Societyin 1850 for his work on "The Determination of the Constant of Precession with respect to the Proper Motion of the Solar System" published in 1840.[7][14]He was a member of theRoyal Swedish Academy of Sciences.Between 1852 and 1889, he was also a member of theRussian Academy of Sciencesand became anacademicianin 1856. In 1874 he became foreign member of theRoyal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences.[15]Theasteroid768 Struveanawas named in honor of Otto Wilhelm,Friedrich Georg WilhelmandKarl Hermann Struve;[16]and alunar craterwas named for another three astronomers of theStruve family:Friedrich Georg Wilhelm,Otto Wilhelm andOtto.TheStruve Geodetic Arcwas included in theWorld Heritage Listin 2005.[17]

See also

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References

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  1. ^abOtto Vasilevich Struve(in Russian)
  2. ^abcОтто Васильевич СтрувеArchived2011-07-26 at theWayback Machine(in Russian)
  3. ^Nyren, M. (1906). "Otto Wilhelm Struve".Popular Astronomy.14:352.Bibcode:1906PA.....14..352N.
  4. ^abcdefNyren, M (1905). "Otto Wilhelm Struve".Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific.17(102): 99.Bibcode:1905PASP...17...96N.doi:10.1086/121632.
  5. ^Batten, Alan Henry (1988).Resolute and undertaking characters: the lives of Wilhelm and Otto Struve.Springer. p. 135.ISBN978-90-277-2652-0.
  6. ^abAstronomy dates and discoveries, chapter 9(in Russian). astro.websib.ru. Archived fromthe originalon 2007-11-13.
  7. ^ab"Dr. Otto Von Struve".Nature.72(1855): 61. 1905.Bibcode:1905Natur..72Q..61..doi:10.1038/072061a0.
  8. ^A Cassiopeian Quartet: OΣΣ 254, OΣ 512, OΣ 511, Bu 1153
  9. ^A Cassiopeian Quartet: OΣΣ 248, OΣΣ 251, OΣ 498, and ARY 33
  10. ^Artemenko, T. G.; Balyshev, M. A.; Vavilova, I. B. (2009). "The struve dynasty in the history of astronomy in Ukraine".Kinematics and Physics of Celestial Bodies.25(3): 153.Bibcode:2009KPCB...25..153A.doi:10.3103/S0884591309030040.S2CID122065816.
  11. ^V. K. Abalkinet al.Struve dynastyArchived2011-05-14 at theWayback Machine(in Russian), St. Petersburg University
  12. ^Newcomb, Simon (1880). "Sketch of Professor Otto Wilhelm Struve".The Popular Science Monthly.17(June): 263–264.
  13. ^Donald E. Osterbrock (1997).Yerkes Observatory, 1892-1950: the birth, near death, and resurrection of a scientific research institution.University of Chicago Press.p. 77.ISBN0-226-63946-0.
  14. ^"Astronomy and the Struve Family".Nature.154(3902): 206. 1944.Bibcode:1944Natur.154Q.206..doi:10.1038/154206a0.
  15. ^"O.W. von Struve (1819 - 1905)".Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences.Retrieved20 July2015.
  16. ^Lutz D. Schmadel (2003).Dictionary of minor planet names.Springer. p. 73.ISBN3-540-00238-3.
  17. ^Struve Geodetic Arc,UNESCO

Further reading

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