Greifswald observatory
The Observatory Greifswald is listed on the 1924 University of Greifswald existing observatory that of its establishment until World War II was used for scientific research. Since 1992 it has also been run as a public observatory and is looked after by a non-profit association. In addition to academic teaching, it primarily serves amateur astronomy and astronomical education for students and laypeople through guided tours, lectures and exhibitions.
history
The history of astronomy at the University of Greifswald had its starting point in the appointment of the philosopher , mathematician , physicist and master builder Andreas Mayer as professor of mathematics, physics and astronomy in 1741. For his astronomical research, he initially set up his home in the Martin- Luther-Straße 10 built an observatory. The house was renovated in 2012 and is now called the "Old Observatory". He later moved the location to the Eldena Monastery .
The first university-owned observatory was established in 1775 in the Fang Tower near the Ryck River . The city of Greifswald signed a lease agreement with the university on February 9, 1775; the annual rent was only one thaler and 16 shillings. To transform the tower into an observatory, additional windows were built in, the upper floor was raised and the shape of the roof changed. From 1807, however, French troops used this building. This meant, partly due to the disappearance of some astronomical instruments in the following years, the decline of the first Greifswald observatory. In 1810 there was a dispute between the university and the city, which reclaimed the tower so that it could be used again as a powder tower. With the annulment of the lease on September 7, 1826, the operation of the observatory in the tower was finally stopped.
It was not until 98 years later that an observatory was set up again in the former building of the Institute for Physics, built in 1891 near the main building of the university in Domstrasse. The optical instruments were supplied by Carl Zeiss Jena . On July 12, 1924, research was finally started in the new observatory. Organizationally, the observatory was part of the Astronomical-Mathematical Institute, which existed at the University of Greifswald until it was dissolved by the Reich Ministry for Science, Education and Public Education on March 31, 1939.
After the end of the Second World War and the restart of research and teaching at the University of Greifswald , the continuation of training and research in the field of astronomy was abandoned. The observatory was maintained by a few amateur astronomers as well as by employees of the then physics section, and some of it was used for lectures. In 1988 renovation work began. The observatory was made accessible to a wider public again in the course of observation evenings, thematic lectures and exhibitions. The restoration of the observatory dome followed in 1991 .
On August 29, 1992 the Greifswalder Sternwarte e. V. founded. The aim of the association is, in addition to the maintenance and modernization of the observatory, to promote the astronomical education of students, pupils and interested laypeople.
Furnishing
The Greifswald observatory has had a refractor with an aperture of 20 centimeters and a focal length of three meters (aperture ratio 1:15) since it was founded . This device was on loan from the Society of Friends and Patrons of the University of Greifswald .
After approval of the necessary funds by the Reich Ministry for Science, Education and National Education, a Newton reflector with a 40 centimeter aperture and 6.40 meter focal length (aperture ratio 1:16) was also purchased by Carl Zeiss on March 21, 1934 for photographic work Jena ordered. This instrument has been part of the observatory since the spring of 1935. After 1990 it was converted to a Cassegrain telescope with a focal length of 9.60 meters, resulting in an aperture ratio of 1:24.
The refractor and the reflector are connected on the same tripod to form a double telescope , which is also equipped with a viewfinder . The refractor acts as a guide scope. The combined instrument is mounted parallactically and is tracked purely mechanically.
In 1991, the equipment was supplemented by a Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope from Meade Instruments with an aperture of 20 centimeters and a focal length of 1.26 meters and a CCD camera . The telescope can be mounted on stationary tripods on the outside balconies of the observatory.
In April 1999 the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics provided the observatory with a 90-centimeter radio telescope for observing astronomical radio sources . This works with a frequency band around 11 gigahertz .
The observatory also has a school telescope of the Telementor type with an opening of 6.3 centimeters and a focal length of 0.84 meters as well as various binoculars, eyepieces and filters. The astronomical library belonging to the observatory contains around 700 books and a number of magazines.
The observatory is equipped with a rotating dome that is six meters in diameter and about 35 meters high.
use
At the Institute for Physics at the University of Greifswald, an annual lecture Introduction to Astronomy and Astrophysics , an associated course in Practical Astronomy and an astronomical colloquium took place twice a semester . The first two-semester introductory course was held during the 2005/2006 winter semester and the 2006 summer semester. In cooperation with the State Institute for Schools and Education of the State of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the training and further education of teachers in the field of astronomy takes place. Astronomical courses are offered to interested laypeople and pupils via the adult education center in Greifswald and in cooperation with the schools in the region.
The Greifswalder Observatory e. V. has been awarding the " Johannes Conrads Prize" every two years since 2007 , a sponsorship award for theoretical and practical work in astronomy. Schoolchildren, students and those interested in astronomy can participate with technical and seminar papers, photo documentation, construction documents of their own astronomical aids and similar work.
The Greifswald observatory will be closed until 2010 due to construction work in the old Institute for Physics. After reopening, the Greifswald observatory will be open to visitors on every first and third Thursday of the month in the evening and on other dates by appointment. The tours are carried out by members of the association. Around 100 events take place every year. Usually these are lectures that arise from certain interesting events or topics from astronomy. The observatory is visited by around 3,000 people each year.
A newly constructed building was handed over in 2007 for the Institute of Physics at the University of Greifswald. In the previous institute building, in the tower of which the observatory is located, the university planned to set up a university exhibition hall after its renovation. In this museum-like exhibition, a total of 17 cultural history and natural science collections from various institutes were to be made permanently accessible to the public from 2008 onwards. However, the realization of this project was abandoned for financial reasons.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Franz Scherer, in: Council of the City of Greifswald - Greifswald-Information (Ed.), Vom Festungswall zur Promenade , Greifswald 1989, p. 22.
- ↑ "Johannes Conrads Prize" - sponsorship award from the Greifswalder Sternwarte e. V. for works from astronomy ( Memento of the original from November 27, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (accessed June 7, 2009)
Web links
- Astronomy in Greifswald Website of the observatory
Coordinates: 54 ° 5 ′ 40.6 ″ N , 13 ° 22 ′ 27.3 ″ E