Nicolas Louis de Lacaille
Nicolas Louis de Lacaille ( born March 15, 1713 Rumigny, Ardennes department, † March 21, 1762 in Paris), also known as Abbé de La Caille, was a French astronomer and namesake of 17 of the 88 constellations.
Life and work
Lacaille studied theology, then devoted himself but more of mathematics and astronomy, and gave the theological career altogether. 1739/1740 he led with César François Cassini de Thury a Meridian Surveying in Paris by determining the circumference of the earth. 1741, he became a member of the Paris Academy.
In 1746 he obtained the chair of mathematics at the Collège Mazarin and acquired in this position great contributions to the correction of star catalogs and astronomical tables.
In 1750, he traveled for four years at the Cape of Good Hope, there to calculate the parallax of the Moon, Venus and Mars in more detail. His position determinations contributed to the distances of these celestial bodies to determine more precisely than previously possible. He also watched the constellations of the southern sky and cataloged here almost 10,000 stars. His Coelum Australe Stelliferum was published posthumously in 1763. He also discovered several nebulous objects such as the galaxy Messier 83, which were later included in the Messier catalog of Charles Messier astronomers. Next he measured from one degree of latitude in the southern hemisphere and provided a map of the islands of Mauritius (then called Île de France) and Réunion (then Île de Bourbon ).
1754 he returned to Paris and presented with untiring zeal astronomical observations and calculations until his death.
His carried out in South Africa Position measurements on fixed stars also occupied the accuracy of the arguments put forward by Isaac Newton assumption that the earth was not a sphere, but - by the centrifugal force due - at the equator must have a larger diameter than from pole to pole. However, Lacaille came to the conclusion that the curvature is on the southern hemisphere lower ( flatter) than in the northern hemisphere. This meridian is known as a problem.
The lunar crater La Caille is named after him.
Constellations by Lacaille
The invented by Lacaille constellations ( with today's terms ): Antlia, Caelum, Circinus, Fornax, Horologium, Mensa, Microscopium, Norma, octane, Pictor, Pyxis, Reticulum, Sculptor and Telescopium.
Works
Major publications by Lacaille are:
- Leçons d' astronomy (Paris, 1746, reprinted by Jérôme Lalande, Paris 1780)
- Ephemerides of Movements célestes depuis 1745-75 (Paris 1745-63, continued by Lalande )
- Planisphère the Stars Austral, dated 1752, published 1756 - for the first time appear on this its newly introduced constellations
- Astronomiae fundamenta (Paris 1757)
- Leçons élémentaires de mécanique (Paris 1757; Latin edition Vienna 1759: digitized )
- Observations faites au Cap de Bonne Espérance - (Paris 1763)
- Coelum australe stelliferum ( edited by Jean -Dominique Maraldi, Paris 1763)
- Observations sur 515 étoiles du zodiaque ( edited by Jean Sylvain Bailly, Paris 1763)
- Tables solaires (Paris 1758)
- Tables de Logarithmes (Paris 1760)