Bothkamp observatory

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The observatory of Herr von Bülow in Bothkamp , 1871 in the journal Die Gartenlaube

The Bothkamp observatory was a historical astronomical research facility. It was located on the edge of the Bothkamp estate in the Plön district south of Kiel and was operated from 1870 to 1914.

history

The large telescope at the observatory in Bothkamp , 1871 in the journal Die Gartenlaube

In 1869, at the suggestion of the astronomer Karl Friedrich Zöllner , the landowner and chamberlain Friedrich Gustav von Bülow (1814-1893) had a private observatory set up on his estate for 700,000 marks and equipped with the most modern equipment. The main instrument was a refractor with an opening of 29.3 cm and a focal length of 4.9 m, which at the time was the largest telescope in Germany. The objective for this was in 1867 Bulow Paris Exposition purchased as a raw casting. The Hamburg optician Hugo Schröder made a refractor for 150,000 marks.

From 1870 to 1874 Hermann Carl Vogel and Wilhelm Oswald Lohse worked in Bothkamp in the field of astrophysics . In particular, they carried out spectroscopic and photometric studies on stars. In 1874 Vogel and Lohse moved to the Astrophysical Institute in Potsdam .

Leo Anton Carl de Ball worked in Bothkamp from 1881 to 1883 . In 1882 he discovered the asteroid (230) Athamantis from there .

After Bülow's death in 1883, the astronomical activities in Bothkamp ceased. In 1914 operations were stopped. The family canceled a donation agreement signed with Paul Harzer in 1919 in favor of the University of Kiel . She then commissioned Kurd Kisshauer with the sale, but this failed. In the 1930s the building was demolished. The equipment came to the museum in Kiel.

Today only the foundations of the observatory are visible.

literature

Coordinates: 54 ° 12 ′ 15.7 ″  N , 10 ° 8 ′ 1.8 ″  E