Düsseldorf observatory
The Düsseldorf observatory (also known as the Bilk observatory or the Charlottenruhe observatory ) was a historical astronomical research facility. It was located near the church Alt St. Martin in Düsseldorf district of Bilk and existed from 1843 bis 1943 .
In 1843 Johann Friedrich Benzenberg , professor of physics and astronomy at the Düsseldorf Lyceum , built a private observatory , which he named "Charlottenruhe" after his late wife Johanna Charlotte Platzhoff (1789–1809). Benzenberg himself carried out sky observations here. The main instrument was a refractor with a focal length of 1.8 m , which was equipped with a circular micrometer to measure star positions .
After his death in 1846, the observatory became the property of the city of Düsseldorf. From 1847 Franz Friedrich Ernst Brünnow was the head of the observatory .
In 1851 Brünnow went to the Berlin observatory and Karl Theodor Robert Luther took over the management. Luther particularly determined the positions of planets and asteroids . He made the data available to other observatories for determining the orbit of the celestial bodies. On April 17, 1852, he discovered the asteroid (17) Thetis . In the following three years Luther discovered the asteroids (26) Proserpina , (28) Bellona and (35) Leukothea . After the fourth discovery, the Düsseldorf municipal council increased his salary, which until then had been 200 thalers a year.
From 1854 to 1857 Luther revised a catalog of stars for the Berlin Royal Academy of Sciences .
On February 20, 1890, (288) Glauke was the last asteroid discovered from Düsseldorf. There were 24 in total.
In 1892 Luther's son Wilhelm , who had previously worked at the Bonn and Hamburg observatories , received a position as adjunct in Bilk.
In 1943 the observatory was destroyed during a bombing raid. The annealed body of the telescope stands today as a reminder in front of the west tower of Alt St. Martin. If you look through the pipe, you can see the weathercock on the church tower.
In memory of the former observatory and in honor of the astronomers who worked there, the street names Benzenbergstraße, Robert-Luther-Straße, Merkurstraße, Neptunstraße, Planetstraße and Sternwartstraße can be found in the vicinity of the historical site.
Also in honor of the observatory, an asteroid discovered in 1967 was named " (4425) Bilk ".
Coordinates: 51 ° 12 ′ 26.64 " N , 6 ° 45 ′ 53.28" E